Wars begin in the minds of men, and in those minds, love and compassion would have built the defenses of peace.

Intercommunal talks were begun in June 1968 through the good offices of the secretary-general as part of the settlement. In April 1964 Thant accepted the Holy See’s designation of itself as a permanent observer. On the day of U Thant's funeral on December 5 1974 tens of thousands of people lined the streets of Rangoon to pay their last respects.

"U" is an honorific in Burmese roughly equal to "Mr". "Thant" was his only name.