unitex@rubbs.fidonet.org (unitex) (09/20/89)
provide them; to plan activities to achieve the desired
objectives; and to monitor and assess performance to obtain
reliable feed-back
V.V. AKSENOV, Director of the Scientific Research Centre for the
Use of Natural Resources in the Soviet Union, called for the
creation of a council at the United Nations to deal with
ecological problems. He said the problems mankind faced in the
area of environmental degradation was so complicated that such a
council was necessary, with the United Nations playing a central
role in resolving those problems.
He said a world-wide effort at public education on ecological
problems was required as many seemed to be unaware of the
serious dangers mankind faced
such as the threat of nuclear war and its after effects. That
was where the role of non-governmental organizations could be
decisive. He said there had been many advances in science, but
gaps in human knowledge of the universe still existed. There
was need for understanding of the problems of environmental
security and safety and the rational use of natural resources.
The present path followed in the exploitation and consumption of
those resources could not be continued. Developing countries
should develop their resources for their own benefit and not for
the developed nations as was the case at present.
As the world moved towards coverting production of military
hardware to civilian purposes, the resources saved could be
diverted to dealing with the problems of the environment. (In
responding to a question, he said that a United Nations
conference on conversion of military production for development
had been planned for the Soviet Union.) Speaking about the
Soviet Fund for Peace, of which he is First Deputy President, he
said its activities had helped create public awareness of
ecological issues resulting in governmental initiatives. He
also called for collaborative effort in the study of space and
its resources for the benefit of mankind.
TOM ERIC VRAALSEN, Permanent Representative of Norway to the
United Nations, said problems of the environment and development
could not be solved through fragmented policies and institutions
or by any one country alone. He said that the views and
concerns of the developing countries weighed very heavily in the
elaboration of policies in the developed countries. The
assumption that there were common interests between developed and
developing countries concerning environmental problems did not
necessarily mean that those interests were identical. But the
seriousness of the situation demanded that a working consensus
be established for future action.
The industrialized countries were responsible for the bulk of the
world's pollution and its environmental impact, and had to
"seriously act upon their own shortcomings" if they were to
persuade developing countries of the need for collective global
responsibility and solidarity. The 1992 international
conference on this question should be action-oriented and deal
with a specific time-frame. It should develop an international
legal instrument on the protection of the atmosphere. And it
should provide the financial unpinnings for its recommendations,
including provision for resource transfers to help the
developing countries to carry out those recommendations. It was
particularly important to take account of the needs of the
poorest of the developing countries.
Concerning the debt crisis, he quoted provisions of the Code of
Hammurabi which called for debt amelioration under certain
conditions. He observed that poverty was said to be "most
toxic", and there was no alternative to accelerated economic
growth for the world's poor. But poverty alleviation need not
be in conflict with sustainable development. It was time for a
global economic summit to launch a new era of international
co-operation in that field, he said.
* Origin: UNITEX --> Toward a United Species (1:107/501)
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Patt Haring | United Nations | FAX: 212-787-1726
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