The Soviet Union and the United States know that, while they have to play a serious game in trying to outmanoeuvre each other and gain strategic or other advantages in the third world, they will never press the buttons unleashing their angels of death and destruction unless pushed into a very tight corner in a region of vital national interest. Therefore, while the major Powers of the Eastern and Western blocs have enjoyed peace for over 40 years, they encourage, seduce and inveigle their surrogates in the third world to carry on their struggle on a conventional level. The majority of the conflicts in the world since 1945 have occurred, or are occurring, in the third world. These conflicts have been or are being fueled by conventional weapons from the super-Powers and their allies in pursuit of their own selfish interests. The danger, therefore, lies in an escalation of conventional conflicts in the third world where both super-Powers and their allies have interests and support rival parties. BHS/gt A/C.l/40/PV.4 54 (Mr. Cheang, Singapore) According to the World Armaments and Disarmaments Yearbook, 1983 of the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), the super-Powers are the principal suppliers of conventional weapons to the third world, in their efforts to compete for political and economic influence. The recent report of the Secretary-General on a study dealing with all aspects of the conventional-arms race and on disarmament relating to conventional weapons and armed forces, document A/39/348 dated 31 August 1984, provides further evidence of the major role that the super-Powers and their allies play in acting as merchants of death. For instance, during the period 1978 to 1982, the United States and the Soviet Union together accounted for about two-thirds of total arms exports of major weapons. Estimates 
**Analysis**
The text discusses the relationship between the Soviet Union and the United States, their involvement in the third world, and the impact of their actions on conflicts and arms trade. It seems to be focused on the political and military aspects of their interactions, rather than economic, social, or environmental issues.

**Category**
International relations, Politics