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PRIME MINISTER
PRIME MINISTER'S REMARKS AT RECEPTION IN HONOUR OF THE
1985 UNITED NATIONS SECURITY COUNCIL, 6 NOVEMBER 1984
YOUR EXCELLENCIES, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN,
' In January 1985, Australia will begin a two-year period as
a member of the United Nations Security Council.
I thought it appropriate to invite here today
representatives of those countries with wifom we will be
working on this important body, of other countries which
will be shortly completing their p eriods of service on the
Security Council, and representatives of Australian
institutions, public and private, which have a major
interest in the United Nations and in problems confronting
the international community, in order to outline how
Australia approaches its task on the Security Council.
Notwithstanding the legitimate criticisms to which the
United Nations is subject, our Government regards it as a
uniquely valuable institution in world affairs in providing
a forum for the expression of the aspirations of the
peoples of the world for peace, justice, equality and
political, social and economic advancement.
As the authors of the UN Charter put it, the peoples of the
United Nations are determined:
to save succeeding generations from the scourge of
war, which twice in our life-time has brought untold
sorrow to mankind;
to reaffirm faith in fundamental human rights, in the
dignity and worth of the human person, in the equal
rights of men and women of nations large and small;
to establish con dcitions under which justice and
respect for the obligations arising from treaties and
other sources of international law-. can be maintained;
and to promote social progress and better standards of
life in larger freedom.
One hundred and forty-six members of the United Nations
voted in favour of Australia's election to the Security
Council. We are extremely proud of and honoured by this
strong support and I believe that it is an expression of
the credibility and respect which Australia's international
activity has earned in the hands of this Government, , and
particularly of Bill Hayden and his officers.
The Security Council is charged specifically with,-the
maintenance-of international peace and security.. This is
an enormous responsibility., Regrettably, the-Council's
record ff ulf T-1ling' its t'ole?-f lls., fax. sho0tVo, the hopesof
thosewh '-dafted thie Uhit~ ecV" Nat idns Chatiir San
2.
Australia does not conclude from this that making the
Council more effective is a task beyond achievement. To
the contrary, we believe that, in our increasingl1y
interdependent world, there is no sensible alternative to
multilateral efforts to solve problems, least of all on
issues of international peace and security.
Australia will approach its term on the Security Council in
this spirit and with the highest sense of responsibility.
We see membership of the Council as an opportunity to
pursue our obligations under the United Nations Charter and
as a challenge to join in the effort to make the Council
what its originators envisaged and what it SO clE-arly needs
to be an effective instrument for the containMEnt of
existing conflicts and for the prevention of new conflicts.
we believe that the Security Council continues to have an
important role in seeking to moderate international tension
and conflict wherever they may arise. Whether the United
Nations is involved in Southern Africa, where the injustice
of apartheid continues to foster violence and to affront
the world community, or the Middle East, or Indochina, I
would like to assure our fellow-members of the 1985
Security Council that they will find Australia a cooperative,
responsible and honest partner in efforts to
bring about peace and reconciliation.
I should like to address some particular remarks to the
five Permanent Members of the Security Council, who happen
also, by a symmetry not envisaged by the UN's founding
fathers, to be the world's five nuclear weapons powers.
The effectiveness of the Security Council is heavily
dependent on the degree of commitment on the part of the
five Permanent Members to make it work. And this in turn
depends heavily on the state of relations between them,
particularly, of course, between the United States and the
Soviet Union.
Despite some recent encouraging developments not~ ably the
talks in Washington in October between President Reagan,
Secretary of State George Shultz and Soviet Foreign
Minister Gromyko -( US-Soviet relations remain very
strained. This is most starklj reflected in the complete
absence of bilateral negotiations to.. control and reduce the
nuclear arsenals and to deal with the militarisation of
outer space, a development that we see as fraught with
great risk and uncertainty.
This situation has understandably, and rightly, given rise
to feelings of great concern and anxiety all over the
world. The Australian Government-has sought to address'
these issues realistically. Given the existence of massive
nuclear-arsenals, the first concern must be to prevent
nuclear-. war through preserving a state of stable mutual
deterre * nce. Australia, as an aligned nation, is in a
position to contribute directly to this objective and we
have consciously shouldered this responsibility.
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There is, however, a second imperative. We know from
investigations into the probable effects of nuclear war
and from the professional consensus that the prospects of
keeping such a war limited are very poor that crossing
the nuclear threshold may be the last thing we ever do. In.
stark contrast to past wars between the major powers, the
world may not again be given a second chance.
The dangers inherent in this situation are only too
obvious. we cannot afford to accept deterrence based on
massive nuclear arsenals as a permanent solution.
Notwithstanding the fact that nuclear weapons have not been
used since 1945 it would be foolish in the extreme to stake
our future on the perpetual infallibility of nuclear
deterrence. It follows that the negotiatioi of agreements to
progressively reduce the nuclear arsenals is of supreme
importance. The agreements must, of course, be balanced
and effectively verifiable if these fundamental
requirements are neglected, stability would be jeopardised
and the negotiating process difficult to sustain. But
these are not insurmountable obstacles. Given the
horrendous consequences of nuclear war and the global
yearning for nuclear disarmament, the mutual concessions
necessary to produce balanced and effectively verifiable
agreements can and must be made.
The control and reduction of the nuclear arsenals is the
pivotal security issue of our time. In the absence of
progress on this issue and in the international political
atmosphere that accompanies that lack of progress the
resolution of other issues that threaten international
peace and security is rendered exceedingly difficult if not
impossible.
The nuclear weapon states alone do not have the right to
determine the destiny of mankind. Every nation has the
right and the responsibility to be heard on the
fundamental issues of nuclear war and nuclear disarmament
and Australia is determined to exercise this right to the
full.
The competition in nuclear weapons is a threat to the
security of every nation on earth. * The-stability of the
nuclear relationship is constantly challenged by.
technological developments. In addition there is the
ever-present risk of the further horizontal proliferation
of nuclear weapons, a risk that is heightened by unceasing
vertical proliferation by th e existing nuclear weapons
states. The degree of stability i n the nuclear
relationship that these states have managed to preserve
could be very severely stressed if the number of
inde pendent players increased further.'
Australia has been a vigorous * advocate of renewed
negotiat ions to control and reduce-the nuclear arsenals and
of greater efforts to strengthen the international nonproliferation
regime. However, Australia, and other
countries like ours, can only do so much. Special
responsibility necessarily resides with the nuclear weapons
states.
On behalf of the Australian Government, I must say frankly
that the response to date of the nuclear powers has not
matched the genuine and legitimate concerns of millions of
ordinary people around the world.
Forty years after the Second World War, the people of the
world, and certainly the people of Australia, yearn for a
real peace a peace that is more than a mere absence of
war.. This is particularly the heart-felt plea of our young
people. They would like to see their leaders unite against
a common enemy the threat of thermonuclear extinction.
The matter is urgent but we must approach it in a spirit of
confident determination and of persistence. We cannot
afford to become despondent or desperate. Rather, through
practical and realistic measures of international cooperation
we must look for ways to lessen this danger which
faces us all.
In conclusion, let me repeat that the Australian
Government's readiness to undertake the obligations of
membership of the Security Council reflects our commitment
to the United Nations and our determination that Australia
should make a worthwhile contribution to its role in the
maintenance of international peace and security'.