resource-endowed developing countries whicharethemselves inaposition toproviae assistance. Inthiscontext, Maltawishestoexpressitsdeepappreciation tothe oil-producing countries oftheGulf,particularly SaudiArabiaandKuwait, forthe pr.·)mptness, understanding andgene,;;:.;sity whichhavecharacterized andstill characterize theirrelations withus. Inotherinstances progress isonlytheresultofslowandpatient effort. Thishasbeenthecaseinconnection withourcommercial relations withJapan, Whereafteryearsofdea~lock aMaltese private andofficial delegation hasjust concluded avisittoTokyofordis~ussions onwaysandmeansinwhichthelarge tradeimbalance wehavewiththatcountry couldbecompensated through aprogramme ofeconomic andotherco-operation between our ~wocountries.(Mr.Trigona, Malta) similarly, withtheVatican, following adifficult period,thisyearhasNR/td A/40/PV.3l 34- • markedasignificant improvement. InAprilanagreement wasfinalized whereby the Catholic ChurchinMaltaconsented totheimplementation overaperiodofthree yearsoftheobjective offreesecondary education forall.Thisistheprelude to theconclusic)n ofacomprehensive concordat whichwillplacerelations between ChurchandStateinMaltaonasoundandclearfooting. Inthisasinotherinstances, theprejudice thatinspires attitudes towards theactionsofsmallStateshasbeenpainfully apparent. Whiletheinternational press·hadalottosay,muchofitadistortion offactsandinvolving confusion , betweendistinct aspectsofinternal andforeignpolicies, whenChurchandStatein Maltawerenotyetinagreement ove~theissuesoffreesecondary education for all,littleifanypublicity hasbeengivensincetothefactthatalldifficulties havenowb~enamicably settled. Itisonlythrough suchaforumasthatprovided bytheUnitedNations thatwecanmakeourvoiceheardinexplanation oftea legitimacy andsuccess oftheactions wehaveundertaken. Ishouldnowliketoturntoanother aspectoftheUnitedNations roleover thepast40yearswhichisofparticular relevance tosmallStateslikeMalta. Thisconcerns whatcouldbetermedthehabitofcollective responsibility onissues ofinternational concern whichtheOrganization hashelpedtofosterovertheyears. Thepursuit ofthisobjective hasnotbeeneasy.Concurrent withthe emergence oftheunitedNations inthesecondhalfofthe1940stherealsoemerged thereality ofabipolarized worlddependent upontheinterests anddictates ofthe twosuper-Powers andthemilitary alliances theyestablished. Overthepast 40yearsthehabitsofmultilateralism have,therefore, hadtocontend withthe imperatives ofsuper-Power hegemony. Abreathing spacewasoffered intheyearsof detente inthesixties clndearlyseventies whichpermitted theconsolidation of--------._----- NR/td A/40/PV.3l 35 (Mr.Trigona, Malta) variousmultilateral processes withintheUnitedNationsitself, especially the emergence ofgroupings liketheGroupof77andtheNon-Aligned Movement, aswell asthefirstattempts towardsregional co-operation forpeaceandstability. Therecentresurgence ofsuper-Power competition hasnotsucceeded ineroding theearlier developments. ThesestillpermitevenasmallStatelikeMaltatotake upitslegitimate roleinthecollective responsibility forsecurity and co-operation. Itisevident thatwehavetakenthemostenergetic actioninthiscontext directly inourownregionofEuropeandtheMediterranean. TheConference on Security andCo-operation inEurope, whichopenedinHelsinki in1973,provided us withanexcellent opportunity toworkwithourneutral andnon-aligned partners in Europeinthesearchforsecurity andco-operation onourcontinent. In collaboration withtheneutral andnon-aligned StatesofEurope wehavenotonly playedanincreasing roleintheprocess ofEuropean security-buildingJ wehave alsosucceeded inentrenching theprinciple thattherecanbenopeaceand co-operation ontheEuropean mainland intheabsence ofpeaceandco-operation in theMediterranean.JVM/ll A/40/PV.3l 36 (Mr.Trigona, Malta) wearenowseekingtogivethisprinciple aconcrete application, ontheone hand,through aneffective confidence andseeurity-building measures regimeforthe Mediterranean tobeagreedoninthecontest oftheongoing Stockholm Conference on Disarmament inEuropeand,ontheotherhand,Maltahasalsotakenaleading role ingalvanizing theleading non-aligned countries oftheMediterranean toformulate theirownprogramme ofactionforpeaceintheirownregion. Thefirstmajorstep inthisprogramme wastheappeallaunched attheMediterranean Non-Aligned Meeting ofForeignMinisters lastyear,urgingalignedStatesoftheregiontoensurethat foreignmilitary facilities ontheirterritories notbepermitted tobeused against theinterests ofnon-aligned States. Slowlybutsteadily, Maltaistherefore participating inaprocess thatwill eventually leadtoafruitful partnership ofactions andinitiatives between the neutral andnon-aligned StatesofEurope, ontheonehand,andofthe Mediterranean, ontheother,intransforming theirregionintoazoneofpeaceand
**Analysis**
The text appears to be a speech by a representative of Malta, discussing the country's relations with other nations, particularly in the context of the United Nations. The speech touches on various topics, including economic cooperation, education, and regional security, but the primary focus is on Malta's role in international affairs and its efforts to promote peace and cooperation.

**Category**
International relations, Education