Message to the Congress Transmitting Annual Report on United States Participation in the United Nations.

To the Congress of the United States:

It is my pleasure to transmit to the Congress the 25th annual report of United States participation in the United Nations, covering events during calendar year 1970.

In my address to the United Nations on the occasion of its 25th anniversary ceremonies, I said that the United States "will go the extra mile in doing our best toward making the United Nations succeed." This has been true of the United States ever since the Charter was signed in San Francisco in 1945, and it will continue to be the case.

If the United Nations is to succeed, I believe that we must now work diligently to make it more effective and more responsive to the demands of today's world. It is clear, for instance, that we must improve the techniques for international cooperation as well as introduce greater efficiency in the operations of the UN system as we conduct more of our foreign affairs through multinational institutions. We achieved significant progress last year in this regard, and we intend to move rapidly now to accelerate the process.

In July, 1970, I established a Commission for the Observance of the 25th Anniversary of the United Nations ¹ and asked it to reappraise the organization's potential and to make recommendations which would strengthen the organization and improve the effectiveness of U.S. participation. The thoughtful and comprehensive report which the Commission has recently submitted ² will help us form a fresh view of the capabilities and limitations of the United Nations, and its recommendations are now being given careful attention.

¹By Executive Order 11546.

²On April 26, 1971, the White House released the transcript of a news briefing on the Commission's report by Henry Cabot Lodge, Chairman, Francis O. Wilcox, Chairman of the Working Group, James C. Hagerty, member, and Gerard J. Mangone, Executive Director, President's Commission for the Observance of the Twenty-fifth Anniversary of the United Nations.

Much of what transpired in the United Nations and its related agencies during 1970 was of direct interest to the United States. For example, on October 24, 1970, the UN General Assembly adopted an International Development Strategy that charts an orderly course for multilateral assistance during the Second Development Decade, which began on January 1 of this year. Early in December, 1970, the Assembly adopted an American-initiated resolution calling for the humanitarian treatment of prisoners of war. The Assembly also overwhelmingly endorsed the establishment of a UN Fund for Drug Abuse Control, and appealed to members to join together in seeking the means to control the spread of drug addiction throughout the world. And on December 16 the International Civil Aviation Organization, a specialized agency of the United Nations, made progress toward controlling the crime of air piracy by adopting in The Hague a convention for the suppression of unlawful seizure of aircraft. The United States and 49 other nations signed the convention on that day. The United Nations also took significant action to deal with other world concerns such as population control, the protection of our environment, and the use of the seas and seabed. We expect much more to be done.

In its peacekeeping role during 1970, the United Nations played a major part in encouraging better relations among the states of the Middle East, including an agreement to a new cease-fire which has been vital to maintaining the peace in that critical area of the world. UN forces and observers also continued to help keep the peace in the troubled areas of Cyprus and Kashmir. As the search continued for better methods of preserving the peace, the General Assembly on the last day of the 25th anniversary commemorative session, approved by acclamation a Declaration on Friendly Relations among States.

These were only a part of the broad spectrum of developments and accomplishments during 1970. It is gratifying, therefore, to add this volume to the record of U.S. participation in the United Nations.

RICHARD NIXON

The White House

September 20, 1971

NOTE. The message is printed in the report entitled "U.S. Participation in the UN, Report by the President to the Congress for the Year 1970" (Government Printing office, 235 PP.).

On July 9, 1971, the President signed Proclamation 4066 proclaiming October 24 as United Nations Day, 1971.