02121957 Text of the Speech made by Sir Pierson Dixon (United Kingdom) in the Security Council Meeting No. 808 held on 2 December 1957

Text of the Speech made by Sir Pierson Dixon (United Kingdom) in the Security Council Meeting No. 808 held on 2 December 1957

The resolution which has just been adopted by the Security Council will, we hope, be a contribution towards a solution of the problem of Kashmir. If it is read as a whole, I am confident that that will be its effect.

I would like to express my Government's gratitude to the representative of Sweden for his timely and constructive initiative. He has once again placed the Governments concerned and the Security Council in his debt.

I would also like to say a word in reply to the statements. which have been made in this Council by the Soviet Union representative. I was disappointed, if not particularly surprised, by Mr. Sobolev's statement at the Council's meeting on 21 November, that he intended to vote against the draft resolution of which the United Kingdom was one of the sponsors [805th meeting, para, 81]. I do not propose to discuss today, at this late stage, the motives which led the Soviet Union to take that decision. I would only say what I think is evident to all that if the Soviet Union had carried out this statement of intention the situation with which we are dealing would have been greatly complicated; the atmosphere would have become even more embittered; and our hopes of modest progress towards a solution would have been diminished.

I would like to convey our good wishes to Mr. Graham in the task with which he is now entrusted. We know that it is not an easy task, but we are confident that he will discharge it with his habitual integrity and skill. We in the United Kingdom are fully aware of the difficulties in the way of finding a solution to this problem. For a number of reasons, we find ourselves living rather close to it. We do not expect Mr. Graham to produce a final, ready-made solution. We do, however, hope that he may be able to accomplish some step forward in the direction of a settlement.

Finally, I should like to appeal to the Governments of India and Pakistan to extend to Mr. Graham, as the representative of the United Nations, their full cooperation.