PHOTO: Ambassador Hoveyda, Chairman of the Ad Hoc Committee, with Diego Cordovez. Secretary of ECOSOC, conferring with Ambassadors Moisov of Yugoslavia and Son of india.

... And Summing Up
H.E. Mr. Fereydoun HOVEYDA
Permanent Representative of Iran to the United Nations
Otherwise known as the "Midnight Delegate" for
keeping colleagues and staff hard at work way past 1.00 AM

The most striking result of the sixth special session of the General Assembly rests perhaps in the fact that it demonstrated clearly the essential truth of our time that no country or group of countries can henceforth unilaterally decide the fate of the planet as a whole. It also served to emphasize the fundamental interdependence which from now on binds together all nations. Finally it underlined the fact that, over and above the economic convulsions which have overtaken the advanced regions of the world in particular, the basic problem remains that of the widening gulf between the industrialized and the developing count countries.
The ideas which emerge explicitly or implicitly from the Establishment of a New Economic Order and Programme of Action, adopted last May, are only a reflection of the directions taken by the current evolution. Despite their imperfections, the two documents constitute an acceptalble basis for a continuous and expanded dialogue between the advanced nations and the others.
It has been said that the Declaration and the Programme have ignored the difficulties of the advanced economies. But let us not forget that the theme of the session was confined solely to the problems of natural resources and development. There was no question of investigating the global economic situation, but only of drawing attention to what was probably the most serious aspect of the disequilibrium.
The developing countries are fully aware of the other problems of the world economy, and, at the special session on development and economic co-operation to be held in September 1975 there will be many chances to examine them.
No one today disputes the need for a fundamental revision of the outworn concepts and practices which underpin the international economic system. There are many attempts here and there to sketch out models which are more in tune with the present needs of the world. What is important is to avoid falling into the errors of the past. The new international economic order will be the collaborative work of all nations or it will not be at all. The stake is so formidable and the situation so serious that we cannot rely on partial measures. The patching up of a moribund system, already deeply resented by the non-industrialized countries because of its injustices, cannot hold
out for long against the thrust of needs which are becoming more urgent. It is very understandable that the nations which have been dominant for so long do not accept light-heartedly the crumbling away of their centuries-old privileges. The others, equally understandably, refuse to continue to accept the consequences of an order which has continually impoverished them. The debate is becoming more bitter just when dialialogue and co-operation appear to he more necessary than ever. All of us must undertake to keep the lines open.
It is obvious that the establishment of a new order implies structural changes. It is clear that the disappearance of exorbitant inequalities requires readjustments. It is self-evident that all those who can afford it must aid those who have nothing. The Cassandras, as always, are spreading a dangerous pessimism under the cover of apparent realism.
Floppily they are mistaken. The very fact that a special session (if the General Assembly was able in 1974 to devote itself to the problems of natural resources and development, is already remarkable in itself. Even more, since last May the oil-producing nations have proclaimed their desire to help others. Several of them have expanded, in a way unequaled in the last, their bilateral and multilateral assistance. Some industrialized countries, despite current difficulties, have increased their programmes for developing countries. These are reassuring signs that cannot be ignored.
As for the international community, operating within the United Nations system, it must encourage these trends and multiply the efforts to facilitate the setting up of an economic order based on equity, sovereign equality, interdependence, common interest and co-operation among all states, big and small, rich and poor.
The next special session on development and economic cooperation will provide a unique occasion for a giant stride ahead. Let us hope that the members of our organization do not let it slip by and that during the intervening months some of the reservations which marked the adoption of the documents of the sixth special session will have been dissipated. All of us must work towards a consensus reflecting the unanimous will of the inhabitants of our globe.

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