shall be wasting the opportunity that we have, as representatives of our respective nations in this world body, to find ways of moving forward. After 40 years of no real progress in disarmament, how much more time do we have? It is my conviction that in the matter of disarmament we may be at a crossroads of crucial importance. Down one road lies deepening anxiety, unabated tension and heightened insecurity. The threat of mutual annihilation will loom ever larger, propelled by an unceasing accumulation and qualitative refinement of weapons of mass destruction, especially nuclear weapons. Arms expendutures will consume an JVM/4 A/C.l/40/PV.3 7 (The Chairman) ever-greater proportion of our resources. Advances in technology will continue to outrun the ponderous pace of political negotiation and may yet undermine the viability of existing restraints and agreements. The focus on outer space, no matter how well-intentioned, will introduce new and destabilizing elements into the escalating arms race. These factors combine to produce a situation of glaring perversity. In the first place, the huge amounts of scarce global resources spent on weapons stand sharply at odds with a world in which millions of people are still suffering from hunger, disease and economic deprivation. worse still, even without being used in conflict, such weapons can have deadly effects, for the material and intellectual resources diverted towards their acquisition and continuous development may well doom the lot of the poor, the oppressed and the under-privileged on our planet in their struggle for basic survival. Such a diversion thus impedes our ability to redress economic inequities and social injustices without which lasting peace can never be obtained. Down the other road lies a ray of hope. In the past year there has been small but perceptible progress in some aspects of the work of the Conference on Disarmament in Geneva. The recent review of the nuclear non-proliferation Treaty 
**Analysis**
The text primarily focuses on the issue of disarmament and its impact on the global community, highlighting the consequences of continued arms race on resources, security, and the struggle for basic survival. It also touches on the relationship between disarmament and economic development, as well as the diversion of resources away from addressing poverty and social injustices.

**Category**
International relations, Science and technology, Health