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General Assembly-Twenty-ninth Session-Plenary Meetings

193. The United Nations has to come to grips with the problems arising from conflicts between growing multinational enterprises and the legitimate needs and claims of individual countries. 194. The world conferences in 1974 and 1975, together with the review of the International Development Strategy for the Second United Nations Development Decade, provide a unique opportunity to work out an integrated approach to problems of global development. We regard this work as an indispensable part of the efforts to secure peace in a long-term perspective. 195. Of equal importance is the work of the United Nations to avert and overcome crises which constitute imminent threats to peace and security, and to create the foundation for lasting peace by means of disarmament. 196. The Charter of the United Nations places the main responsihility for peace and security on the permanent members of the Security Council. This assumes a willingness and ability on the part of the States to reach agreement. Two of them, the United States and the Soviet Union, have come to play a special role on account of their economic strength and their military resources, particularly in the field of nuclear weapons. All attempts to limit their immense armaments should be greeted with satisfaction. The results so far, however, have been quite inadequate. No efficient barriers have yet been created to halt the development of their most destructive weapons. The cessation of all nuclear testing still meets resistance. The unwillingness or inability of the leading nuclear-weapon States to live up to their commitments under the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons-Is one of the reasons why the Treaty has not gained sufficient support. The threat increases that. n uclear arms may be produced by a growing number-of countries. Six Powers have carried out nuclear explosions during the past year. A strengthening of the control of fissionable material is a matter which requires urgent international attention. The multilateral agreements which have so far been reached in the field of armaments are of limited value. The negotiations on a ban on chemical weapons proceed only too slowly. The efforts to prohibit the use of particularly cruel weapons have not yet resulted in any decisions. 197. States Members of the United Nations must raise their voices to make it clear that practical results are now needed in the struggle against war and the means of war. 198. The United States and the Soviet Union have tended to seek bilateral understanding also on other vital issues. The efforts towards detente by these Powers seem to imply mutual recognition of, and respect for, the interests of the other party as well as an understanding to follow closely and to attempt to limit any crisis which ultimately may lead to a major war. Agreements between them for these purposes are essential for lasting world peace. However, this policy also entails problems for States and peoples whose legitimate interests may not be duly taken into account. The policy of detente is incomplete as long as it does not tackle the basic political problems which create local tensions and conflicts.

199. The great Powers have in a number of cases been anxious to anchor their agreements in decisions by the United Nations. If other Member Slates are given reasonable opportunities to influence the final results of negotiations, such ratification by the world community is in the interest of all. Confidence in the United Nations is strengthened. All States are given joint responsibility for translating the agree. ments into practical action and for making them a basis for peaceful and permanent solutions. 200. There is anxiety in many quarters that States commanding superior resources may use them in order to influence internal political developments in smaller countries. The Charter of the United Na· tions as well as the Declaration on Principles of Inter, national Law concerning Friendly Relations and Co. operation among States in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations [resolution 2625 (XXV), annex] aims at establishing protection against such interference. The Declaration emphasizes that every State has the duty to respect the right of all peoples freely to determine, without external interference, their political, economic and social conditions. It is emphatically stated that no nation shall " .. . organize, assist, foment, finance, incite or tolerate subversive, terrorist or armed activities directed towards the violent overthrow of the regime of another State, or interfere in civil strife in another State". Evidently those principles are as binding for great Powers as for small nations. No State may evade those obligations by referring, for instance, to interests of national security. 20I. The tragic fate of Cyprus is a matter of serious concern for the United Nations and its Members. No one can deny that the crisis was triggered by the irresponsible policies of the earlier Greek regime. The dangers of expansionist dictatorship, lacking democratic support, have again been demonstrated. We welcome the fact that the people of Greece will have the opportunity to shape its own destiny. 202. The military intervention of Turkey in Cyprus could be viewed against the background of 10 years of unsuccessful attempts to regulate the relationship between the two population groups on the island and the situation that suddenly arose this past summer; but in the light of the Charter, the Turkish intervention is a matter for serious concern. Today there is an urgent need for clear confirmation that the objective of the intervention is restricted to maintaining the independence of Cyprus and protecting the legitimate interests of the Turkish minority. 203. In our opinion, any settlement of the Cyprus problem must provide guarantees for the independence and territorial integrity of the country. Independent Cyprus must also be enabled to continue its policy of non-alignment. Sweden does not try to persuade other States to adopt a policy of nonalignment but regards it as essential that such a policy, once freely chosen, be respected. Strategic interests must not take precedence over the right to self-determination of small countries. 204. In the other serious conflict in the Eastern Mediterranean, the United Nations involvement datesvback to the role played by the General As-