Text of the Speech made by Mr. Hsueh (China) in the Security Council Meeting No. 1241 held on 18 September 1965
Text of the Speech made by Mr. Hsueh (China) in the Security Council Meeting No. 1241 held on 18 September 1965
I wish to associate my delegation with the expression of appreciation extended to the Secretary-General for his mission of peace to India and Pakistan. While his efforts to give effect to the Council's resolutions have not received positive responses in all cases from the parties concerned, my delegation is gratified that the mission has not been altogether fruitless.
His two reports have thrown a flood of light on the critical situation. The impressions he has formed and the recommendations he has made should receive the Council's most serious consideration. The Secretary General has found that both India and Pakistan are desirous of a cessation of hostilities in the entire area of the current conflict. But in an atmosphere of suspicion, fear and highly charged emotionalism, it is not surprising that both parties have found it necessary to make charges and counter charges against the other, rather than to accede in a clear-cut manner to the cease-fire appeals of the Security Council and to the personal appeals of the Secretary-General. This has made the mission undertaken by the Secretary-General even more difficult and complicated.
In this respect, it is only fair to note, as was ably pointed out a while ago by the representative of Malaysia, that India did indicate to the Secretary-General its readiness to accept a simple cease-fire. On the other hand, Pakistan made its acceptance conditional upon certain measures that were unacceptable to India. As a result, the fighting continues unabated and the situation remains grave.
As the organ responsible for the maintenance of peace and security, the Security Council clearly cannot evade its responsibility. It must act immediately in such a way as to enable the leaders of both India and Pakistan to find it possible to get out of a blind alley.
In his report [S/6626] to the Council at the 1239th meeting the Secretary-General suggested the advisability of applying Articles 39 and 40 of the United Nations Charter to enforce the cease-fire. This may very well turn out to be quite unnecessary. But it appears to be a logical step to take in order not only to uphold the authority of the Council, but, what is more important, also to put an effective stop to a war which though as yet local in nature may well escalate to such a scale as to endanger world peace.
My delegation welcomes this and the other recommendations of the Secretary-General and will be happy to support any initiative leading to a resolution that will bring about an effective cessation of hostilities. For, in the present grave situation, the foremost prerequisite to a final settlement of the Kashmir dispute is an immediate cease-fire. The Kashmir question has been with us for seventeen years.
It is sad to note that with the passage of time there seems to be a progressive hardening of positions. It is this erosion of flexibility that has made the present conflict inevitable. It seems to my delegation, however, that the present tragic events should have the effect of demonstrating the futility of trying to settle disputes by force of arms. This is a time for a change of positions. The leaders of India and of Pakistan need all the magnanimity they are capable of to bring the Kashmir question to a lasting solution. It is suicidal to allow this running sore to go on festering until it is beyond all cure.
In his statement before the Council at our meeting yesterday, the representative of India referred to the fact that the communists of my country have made use of this fratricidal struggle between India and Pakistan to threaten intervention. Let me take this opportunity to state, with all the emphasis at my command, that the warlike behaviour of the group of men in Peiping is alien to the peaceful traditions of the Chinese people.
China and India have lived together as good neighbours for thousands of years. Their relationship has been marked. by mutual respect and cultural collaboration. Throughout the centuries there has been a continuous exchange of scholars, artists and religious teachers. There has never been a time and I repeat, never-when the peoples of the two neighbouring countries confronted each other in armed conflict. It saddened me to listen to that part of the statement of the representative of India in which he related how the communists on the mainland of China have taken advantage of the present conflict on the subcontinent to threaten India with war This is another example of the aggressive proclivities of the Chinese commu nist regime. It is only too obvious that if India and Pakistan should continue to lock themselves in mortal kombat, the ultimate victor, not only in Kashmir but also on the sub continent would be neither India nor Pakistan, but the evil forces represented by Peiping.
Before concluding, may I take this opportunity to pay a high tribute to His Excellency Ambassador Rifa'i of Jordan, who is leaving us very soon. We will sorely miss him. We will miss his wisdom, but we wish him success and the best of health wherever he goes.