Imagini ale paginilor
PDF
ePub

PART

Problems of International
Security

A. COMMUNIST AGGRESSION IN
THE FAR EAST

DURING all of 1950 problems connected with or resulting from international Communist efforts at expansion in the Far East dominated the work of the United Nations.

Beginning in January Soviet representatives in the United Nations "walked out" when their demand for unseating representatives of the National Government of China and seating of representatives of the Chinese Communist regime was rejected. In August they began to return. The North Korean regime had launched an armed aggression against the Republic of Korea in June, to which the United Nations had immediately reacted. At the end of November, when it appeared that the North Korean aggression had been all but overcome, armed forces of the Communist regime in China began a large-scale armed attack against the forces of the United Nations in Korea. The outcome was still in doubt at the end of 1950.

At the outset of the North Korean aggression the United States had taken steps to neutralize Formosa which led to consideration, in both the Security Council and the General Assembly, of the future of this island, seat of the Chinese National Government. In addition the Formosan question had been included in complaints of alleged United States aggression made by the Chinese Communist regime and by the U.S.S.R. The Soviet Union also complained concerning alleged bombing and "strafing" in Manchuria by the United States Air Force. The policies and action of the United States in all these over

lapping issues, as well as in Chinese National Government charge against the Soviet Union and the question of an invasion of Tibet by Chinese Communist troops, are elaborated in the following pages.

1. Chinese Representation in the United Nations and the Soviet Walk-Outs

In October 1949 a Chinese Communist regime was proclaimed in Peiping. Before the end of the year it was recognized by the Soviet group, Burma and India and early in 1950 by Pakistan, the United Kingdom, Norway, Denmark, Israel, Afghanistan, Sweden, the Netherlands, Indonesia, Switzerland, and Yugoslavia. The United States. together with a large majority of the other members of the United Nations, continued to recognize the National Government of China. which had in December 1949 moved to Formosa.

In the Security Council the Soviet Union on January 10, 1950, submitted a draft resolution calling upon the Council not to recognize the credentials of the representative of the Chinese National Government and to exclude him from the Council. On January 13, 1950, a telegram from Chou En-lai, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Chinese Communist regime, informed the Secretary-General of the United Nations that Chiang Wen-t'ien had been appointed the delegate to the United Nations. On the same day the Council rejected the Soviet resolution by a vote of 3 in favor (U.S.S.R., India, and Yugoslavia). 6 against (China, Cuba, Ecuador, Egypt, France, and the United States), and 2 abstaining (Norway and the United Kingdom). There upon the Soviet representative declared that the Soviet Delegation would not participate in the work of the Security Council until the "representative of the Kuomintang group" had been removed from the Council and that the U.S.S.R. would not recognize as legal any decisions of the Security Council adopted with the participation of that representative and would not deem itself bound by such decisions. The Soviet representative then left the meeting.

Our representative stated that it was the United States view that the willfull absence of a permanent member from a meeting of the Security Council in no way diminishes its powers or its authority to act and that the Soviet absence could not be permitted to prevent the Security Council from fulfilling its obligation under the Charter to be organized so as to be able to function continuously.

Thereafter, in the various organs and subsidiary bodies of the United Nations in which they and China participated, members of the Soviet group submitted motions practically identical with that made by the U.S.S.R. in the Security Council. When the motion was rejected, the Soviet member or members in each case walked out after declaring they would refuse to participate so long as a representative of the "Kuomintang clique" remained and declared further that the governments of the Soviet group refused to recognize the validity of any subsequent decisions by the body. By September the Soviet Union or members of its group had walked out of almost 40 organs, subsidiary bodies, or conferences.

The Chinese Communist regime in many of the above instances claimed the right to represent China; in other instances there was only a Soviet motion to exclude the Nationalist representative.

U.S. representatives consistently opposed efforts to unseat the representatives of the Chinese National Government and seat representatives of the Chinese Communist regime in all U.N. and specialized-agency bodies where the Chinese-representation issue was raised. The views of the United States on the Chinese-representation issue were shared by the large majority of U.N. members. During 1950 the Chinese-representation issue was voted upon over 40 times in 37 U.N. and specialized-agency bodies. In every instance but one, motions to unseat the Chinese National representatives and seat Chinese Communists were rejected. In one minor body, the Executive and Liaison Committee of the Universal Postal Union, a Chinese Communist was seated provisionally for the 1950 session only. (This decision was later reversed, and a U.S. proposal to seat the representative of the Chinese National Government was adopted.)

Notwithstanding the absence of the Soviet bloc during the early part of the year, the Security Council and other bodies conducted their business as usual.

On June 25 and 27 the Security Council took action against a breach of the peace in Korea. Throughout July the Security Council continued to deal with this aggression. Under the monthly rotation plan provided in the rules of procedure of the Security Council, the turn of the representative of the U.S.S.R. to be the president of the Council came during the month of August. At the beginning of the month Mr. Malik, the Soviet representative, took over the functions of this position and resumed his attendance at the meetings of the Security Council.

The Soviet representative continued to claim, however, that the proceedings of the Security Council held in his absence were "illegal." The question of Chinese representation entered a new phase with the opening of the fifth session of the General Assembly in September.

941458-51

4

31

At the first meeting India proposed a resolution to seat the Chinese Communist representatives and to recommend that other United Nations organs do likewise. The Soviet Union submitted two resolutions, one providing for the exclusion of the National Government representatives, the other providing for the seating of the Chinese Communist representatives. A Canadian proposal, with an Australian amendment accepted by Canada, provided for a special committee consisting of seven members, nominated by the president of the General Assembly and confirmed by the General Assembly, to consider the question of Chinese representation and to report, with recommendations, to the Assembly after it had considered a Cuban item on the general question of the recognition of the representation of a member state by the United Nations. Pending an Assembly decision on the report of this special committee, the representatives of the National Government of China should be seated in the Assembly. Secretary of State Acheson urged that the matter be decided as soon as possible and expressed his opposition to the seating of the Chinese Communists. In the voting the Indian resolution was rejected by 33 votes to 16, with 10 abstentions. The paragraph of the Canadian resolution establishing the special committee was adopted by 38 votes to 6, with 11 abstentions. The final paragraph, providing for the seating of the representatives of the National Government, was adopted by 42 votes to 8, with 6 abstentions. The two Soviet proposals were rejected by 38 votes to 10, with 8 abstentions, and 37 votes to 11, with 8 abstentions, respectively.

The question raised by Cuba on recognition of the representation of a member state by the United Nations was considered by the Ad Hoc Political Committee between October 18 and November 27. On the latter date the Committee adopted a resolution which, with an amendment, was approved by the General Assembly on December 14. It recommends that, if such a question becomes the subject of controversy in the United Nations, it should be considered by the General Assembly, or by the Interim Committee if the Assembly is not in session, in the light of the purposes and principles of the Charter: that the attitude adopted should be taken into account by other United Nations organs and in the specialized agencies; and that this attitude should not in itself affect the direct relations of individual member states with the state concerned.

On December 12 President Entezam had presented to the Assembly his nominations for membership in the special committee on Chinese representation. These were India, Canada, Ecuador, Mexico, the Philippines, Poland, and Iraq. The Assembly using a secret ballot, an exceptional procedure, confirmed these nominations.

After the adoption of the resolution on the recognition of the representation of a member state, the special committee met, Ecuador being absent. Electing Sir Benegal N. Rau of India as chairman, it decided by 3 votes to 1, with 3 abstentions, to allow the chairman, in the light of the discussions relating to the cease-fire in Korea, to use his discretion concerning the time of the next meeting.

At the year's end the Soviet Union or members of its group had resumed their participation in the principal organs of the United Nations as well as in a number of subsidiary bodies. In most instances they moved that the Chinese Nationalist representative be excluded and that the Communist representative be seated. When these motions were rejected the Soviet-bloc representatives usually stated that they would consider the vote of the Chinese representative in the body illegal.

2. Aggression in Korea

In the early morning of June 25, 1950 (local time), the Communist regime in North Korea launched a surprise attack against the Republic of Korea. It was directed against an independent government which had been brought into being with the participation of the United Nations and which reflected the free choice of the peaceful people who inhabited its territories.

This assault upon the Republic of Korea was clearly a violation of the United Nations Charter. Accordingly, the United States brought the matter to the attention of the United Nations at once, requesting an immediate meeting of the Security Council. When the Security Council met on Sunday, June 25 (New York time), there was already available to it a report from the United Nations Commission on Korea (UNCOK) which declared that the attack was assuming the character of a full-scale war which might endanger the maintenance of international peace and security. The Security Council adopted by a vote of 9 to 0, with 1 abstention (Yugoslavia) and 1 absence (Soviet Union), a resolution which determined that the armed attack upon the Republic of Korea constituted a breach of the peace, and called for immediate cessation of hostilities and withdrawal of North Korean forces to the 38th parallel. The resolution also called upon all members to lend every assistance to the United Nations in carrying out its provisions and to refrain from giving assistance to the North Korean authorities. (The Soviet representative was absent when the Security Council considered the question, having "walked out" over the issue of Chinese representation.)

« ÎnapoiContinuă »