Guyana's prime Minister, Mr. Forbes Burnham, on Tuesday (8 August) opened a Non-Aligned Foreign Ministers' Conference in Georgetown. Sixty-four nations were invited to the conference and others sent observers.

The major objective of the meeting is to allow the non-aligned countries to review their role in the world because of the detente among the super powers.

In opening the conference, Mr. Burnham said the present detente did not mean an end to armed confrontation. He warned the non-aligned to guard against efforts to divide them.

SYNOPSIS: The main reason for the meeting was to allow the non-aligned to examine their role in the world following the detente among the super powers. In opening the conference, Mr. Burnham said the detente did not mean the end of armed confrontation. topics up for discussion included the issues of colonialism, matters of economics, neutralisation of various regions -- including Southeast Asia -- and the future of African guerrilla movements.

Also high on the agenda were the situations in the Middle East and Vietnam and the question of membership for the new state of Bangladesh.

Another key topic was what attitude the non-aligned nations should adopt to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, whose third meeting in Santiago last April and May left many developing countries dissatisfied. Watching the conference from the sidelines were observers from the People Republic of China and the Soviet Union.