Economic and social consequences of the armaments race and its extremely harmful effects on world peace and security.

  The General Assembly, Having considered the item entitled "Economic and social consequences ofthe armaments race and its extremely harmful effects on world peace andsecurity", Recalling its resolutions 2667 (XXV) of 7 December 1970, 2831 (XXVI) of16 December 1971, 3075 (XXVIII) of 6 December 1973, 32/75 of 12 December 1977and 35/141 of 12 December 1980, Deeply concerned that the arms race, particularly in nuclear armaments,and military expenditures continue to increase at an alarming speed,constituting a grave danger for world peace and security, Recalling also the conclusion of the General Assembly at its twelfthspecial session, the second special session devoted to disarmament, thatthe vastly increased military budgets have also contributed to currenteconomic problems in certain States and that existing and planned militaryprogrammes constitute a colossal waste of precious resources which mightotherwise be used to raise the living standards of all peoples and solve theproblems confronting developing countries in achieving economic and socialdevelopment, Reaffirming the need for all Governments and peoples to be informed aboutand understand the situation prevailing in the field of the arms race anddisarmament, Having in mind the objectives of the World Disarmament Campaign,solemnly launched at the twelfth special session, which is intended to promotepublic interest in, and support for, reaching agreements on measures of armslimitation and disarmament, Recalling further paragraph 93 (c) of the Final Document of the TenthSpecial Session of the General Assembly, which provides that theSecretary-General shall periodically submit reports to the Assembly on theeconomic and social consequences of the armaments race and its extremelyharmful effects on world peace and security, Considering that the elaboration of such reports should be viewed as ameasure aimed at building confidence among States,

1. Welcomes with satisfaction the updated report of theSecretary-General on the economic and social consequences of the arms race andof military expenditures;

2. Expresses its thanks to the Secretary-General and to the Group ofConsultant Experts on the Economic and Social Consequences of the Arms Raceand of Military Expenditures, as well as to the Governments and internationalorganizations that have rendered assistance in updating the report;

3. Recommends that the conclusions of the updated report should bebrought to the attention of public opinion and also taken into account infuture action by the United Nations in the field of disarmament;

4. Requests the Secretary-General to make the necessary arrangementsfor the reproduction of the report as a United Nations publication and to giveit publicity in the framework of the World Disarmament Campaign, taking alsointo account the views expressed on the report by Member States not later than1 March 1983;

5. Recommends that all Governments should ensure the widest possibledistribution of the report, including, where appropriate, its translation intothe respective national languages;

6. Invites the specialized agencies as well as intergovernmental,national and non-governmental organizations to use their facilities to makethe report widely known;

7. Reaffirms its decision to keep the item entitled "Economic andsocial consequences of the armaments race and its extremely harmful effects onworld peace and security" under constant review, and decides to include it inthe provisional agenda of its fortieth session.