Governments have taken little action on the Brandt Report partly because of lack of political will, but more fundamentally because of Northern governments' failure to understand their stake in the development of the South. Equally important are the misunderstandings on the part of both North and South of each other's motives in the North‐South dialogue, which is trapped in a vicious circle of disillusion and hostility. A summit is needed to break the stalemate.