the world appeared more democratic than ever. Indeed, UN mem-
bership had risen from 51 countries in 1945 to 153 in 1980, due for
the most part to the newcomers from the South.^65 International
solidarity, it was felt, had grown as never before. The first display of
that solidarity had come with the Marshall Plan, which, thanks to the
leadership of the United States, had hastened the reconstruction of
Western Europe. It continued with the aid regime established during
the 1950s and the 1960s. In 1980, the developed countries were proud
to claim that their generosity toward developing countries represented
0.37 percent of their GNP,^66 even though aid was by their own
admission not devoid of self-interest. After all, it seemed only natural
that priority should be given to friendly governments. To cite a cost-
benefit analysis of that period, the key was to ensure that foreign
assistance would generate more “utility” for the poor than “disutility”
for the rich.^67
Many also believed that the expansion of the world economy would
have been even more spectacular if, instead of adopting an attitude of
sterile confrontation, the governments of developing countries had
accepted to follow the policies promoted by the North. The strategy of
openness implemented by the newly industrializing countries of Asia
(South Korea, Taiwan, Singapore) was far more appreciated than the
inward-looking policies adopted by a majority of Southern states.
Criticism of the Third World turned especially harsh in the 1970s,
when the group of 77 (G-77) launched discussions on a new inter-
national economic order (NIEO) at the UN. Many conservatives felt
that this coalition of countries – whose membership had quickly risen
to more than a hundred states – was too heterogeneous to be credible.
British journalist Rosemary Righter, for instance, concluded that the
NIEO negotiations were nothing more than a form of “theater,” driven
by “the power of incantation.”^68 Touching on questions as diverse as
trade in primary commodities, control of transnational corporations,
access to technology, and decision-making procedures in international
(^65) Louis Emmerij, Richard Jolly, and Thomas G. Weiss,Ahead of the Curve?
UN Ideas and Global Challenges, Bloomington, Indiana University Press,
66 2001, p. 59.
OECD,Twenty-five Years of Development Co-operation: A Review, Paris,
OECD, 1985, p. 335.
(^67) OECD,Development Co-operation: 1980 Review, Paris, OECD, 1980, p. 63.
(^68) Righter,Utopia Lost, pp. 114 and 117.
The age of universality (1945–1980) 129