Nations to function. International relations require some spirit of accommodation and compromise and this is especially true of the membership problem. There are six European applicants clearly qualified for membership, namely, Austria, Finland, Ireland, Italy, Portugal, and Spain. There are the seven Asian-African applicants whose membership was recommended by the Bandung conference for present admission, namely, Cambodia, Ceylon, Japan, Jordan, Laos, Libya, and Nepal. These also are equally clearly qualified. All of these 13 we support. We believe that there are other qualified applicants. For example, we do not believe that the Republic of Korea should be barred from membership merely because part of its territory is wrongfully and forcefully detached from the authority of what this General Assembly has held to be the only lawfully elected government in Korea. The Republic of Viet-Nam is another qualified applicant, barred only by Soviet veto. We shall not support in any form the applications made for Albania. Bulgaria, Hungary, Outer Mongolia, and Rumania. In our opinion, the governments of these states are not now independent and their present subject status constitutes, or derives from, a violation of treaties and other international engagements. The United States recognizes, however, that the issues before us are those about which there can be honest differences of opinion. For this reason, among others, it is not our intention to use the veto in the Security Council to thwart what may be the will of a qualified majority in the Security Council and in the General Assembly in relation to the subject matter of the joint resolution. Should this bring before the Security Council resolutions on admission which, in our opinion, involve infractions of the charter, we shall, in accordance with the spirit of the Vandenberg resolution, abstain from voting so as not to exercise, on this question of admissions, the veto power. We shall abstain from voting on the joint resolution now before us [U.N. doc. A/AC. 80/L. 3/Rev. 1]2 because, while in form this resolution only requests the Security Council to "consider" certain applications, some practical interpretations of that resolution are such that we hesitate to vote for it lest that might seem to involve us in a departure from our principles enumerated above. We earnestly hope that out of the present discussion will come the admission of those qualified states whose exclusion clearly violates our charter and whose presence amongst us will add greatly to the wisdom of our councils and to the weight of moral authority which is exercised by this organization. 1 The Afro-Asian conference held at Bandung, Indonesia, Apr. 18-24, 1955; for the text of the Final Communiqué of the conference, see infra, pp. 2344-2352. 2 Infra. 48. RESOLUTION 918 (X) OF THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY, DECEMBER 8, 19551 The General Assembly, Having noted the general sentiment which has been expressed on numerous occasions in favour of the widest possible membership of the United Nations, Having received the preliminary report (A/2973) of the Committee of Good Offices established by General Assembly resolution 718 (VIII) of 23 October 1953,2 Taking into account the statements about the admission of new Members made by permanent members of the Security Council in the general debate at the present session of the General Assembly, Believing that a broader representation in the membership of the United Nations will enable the Organization to play a more effective role in the current international situation, 1. Expresses appreciation of the work and efforts of the Committee of Good Offices; 2. Requests the Security Council to consider, in the light of the general opinion in favour of the widest possible membership of the United Nations, the pending applications for membership of all those eighteen countries about which no problem of unification arises; 3. Requests further that the Security Council make its report on these applications to the General Assembly during the present session. 49. RESOLUTION 995 (X) OF THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY, DECEMBER 14, 1955 3 The General Assembly, Having received the recommendation of the Security Council of 14 December 1955 that the following countries should be admitted to membership in the United Nations: Albania, Jordan, Ireland, Portugal, Hungary, Italy, Austria, Romania, Bulgaria, Finland, Ceylon, Nepal, Libya, Cambodia, Laos, and Spain, Having considered the application for membership of each of these countries, Decides to admit the above-mentioned sixteen countries to membership in the United Nations. 1 General Assembly, Official Records, Tenth Session, Supplement No. 19 (A/3116), p. 8. 2 Ibid., Eighth Session, Supplement No. 17 (A/2630), p. 5. Ibid., Tenth Session, Supplement No. 19 (A/3116), p. 50. 50. STATEMENT RELEASED BY THE DEPARTMENT OF STATE TO THE PRESS, DECEMBER 15, 19551 The United States is greatly pleased that despite continued Soviet obstruction over the past 9 years, including the casting of 44 vetoes on admission of new members, 12 free nations have at long last taken their rightful place in the United Nations. These countries have a great contribution to make to this world body and should increase considerably the vitality and usefulness of the organization. One glaring injustice remains. As Ambassador [John M.] Allison informed the Japanese Foreign Minister early today, we are extremely sorry that the Soviet Union has once again seen fit to veto Japan's admission to the United Nations. Japan's just claim to membership, which the United States has consistently and actively supported, has again been frustrated by the Soviet Union. The cynical action of the Soviet Union was in defiance of the recognition by the overwhelming majority of the present members of the United Nations that Japan is fully eligible for membership under the charter. It is clear that the Soviet Union in vetoing Japan has sought only to preserve for itself a bargaining pawn. We think the opinion of the world will know how to appraise this self-serving tactic. 3 the Ambassador Lodge made every effort yesterday to bring about the seating of Japan, and the United States will continue to urge upon United Nations the admission of Japan, which, like the other free nations already admitted, has a considerable contribution to make to the effectiveness of the organization. Indeed, it is not too late to hope that the Soviet Union will yield to the tremendous pressure of world opinion and withdraw its veto of Japan. There is still time to do this if the Soviet Union will but recognize the injustice of Japan's exclusion. Question of the Representation of China 51. RESOLUTION 490 (V) OF THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY, SEPTEMBER 19, 1950 * The General Assembly, 4 Taking note of differences of view concerning the representation of China in the United Nations, Establishes a Special Committee consisting of seven Members 1 Department of State Bulletin, Dec. 26, 1955, pp. 1071–1072. 2 Not printed. 3 See the Department of State Bulletin, Dec. 26, 1955, pp. 1072-1073. p. 79. 1 nominated by the President and confirmed by the General Assembly 1 to consider the question of Chinese representation and to report back, with recommendations, to the present session of the General Assembly, after the Assembly shall have considered item 62 of the provisional agenda (item proposed by Cuba);2 Resolves that, pending a decision by the General Assembly on the report of this Special Committee, the representatives of the National Government of China shall be seated in the General Assembly with the same rights as other representatives. 52. RESOLUTION 396 (V) OF THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY, DECEMBER 14, 1950 3 The General Assembly, Considering that difficulties may arise regarding the representation of a Member State in the United Nations and that there is a risk that conflicting decisions may be reached by its various organs, Considering that it is in the interest of the proper functioning of the Organization that there should be uniformity in the procedure applicable whenever more than one authority claims to be the government entitled to represent a Member State in the United Nations, and this question becomes the subject of controversy in the United Nations, Considering that, in virtue of its composition, the General Assembly is the organ of the United Nations in which consideration can best be given to the views of all Member States in matters affecting the functioning of the Organization as a whole, 1. Recommends that, whenever more than one authority claims to be the government entitled to represent a Member State in the United Nations and this question becomes the subject of controversy in the United Nations, the question should be considered in the light of the Purposes and Principles of the Charter and the circumstances of each case; 2. Recommends that, when any such question arises, it should be considered by the General Assembly, or by the Interim Committee if the General Assembly is not in session; 3. Recommends that the attitude adopted by the General Assembly or its Interim Committee concerning any such question should be taken into account in other organs of the United Nations and in the specialized agencies; Special Committee: Canada, Ecuador, India, Iraq, Mexico, the Philippines, On Dec. 12, 1950, the General Assembly elected the following states to the and Poland (ibid.). Item 61 of the agenda as approved by the General Assembly (note in Official Records). On Oct. 16, 1951, the Special Committee reported that it was unable to make any recommendation (U.N. doc. A/1923). On Nov. 5, 1951, the General Assembly took note of the Special Committee's report (Res. 501 (V); Official Records, Fifth Session, Supplement No. 20A (A/1775/Add. 1), p. 2). General Assembly, Official Records, Fifth Session, Supplement No. 20 (A/1775), pp. 24-25. 4. Declares that the attitude adopted by the General Assembly or its Interim Committee concerning any such question shall not of itself affect the direct relations of individual Member States with the State concerned; 5. Requests the Secretary-General to transmit the present resolution to the other organs of the United Nations and to the specialized agencies for such action as may be appropriate. 53. SENATE RESOLUTION 36 (82d CONGRESS, 1st SESSION), JANUARY 23, 19511 Resolved, That it is the sense of the Senate that the Communist Chinese Government should not be admitted to membership in the United Nations as the representative of China. 54. STATEMENT BY THE SECRETARY OF STATE, I arise to speak in support of the recommendation of the General Committee. This recommendation would leave the representation of China during this sitting in Paris as it is at the present time and would enable us to go on with our business without further obstruction from this question. I think that the minds of all of us-or almost all of us, at any raterevolt at the necessity of the proposal even that we should be called upon to debate and consider here the seating of a regime at the very moment when that regime is engaged in defying to the greatest extent that it possibly can the authority of this General Assembly and of this world organization; at a time when that regime is engaged with its troops in killing the countrymen of at least a score of delegations seated in this hall those countrymen are defending the cause, the prestige, the honor of the United Nations, and the cause of world peace that we should consider this at a time when this regime is under indictment by this very organization in which it is now proposed to sit under indictment as a party to aggression in Korea; that we should consider seating this regime at the time when its international conduct is so low that it would take considerable improvement to raise it to the general level of barbarism. 1 Congressional Record, vol. 97, p. 558. 2 Department of State Bulletin, Dec. 3, 1951, p. 917; see also statement of Nov. 10, 1951, by Ambassador Austin (ibid.). On Nov. 10, 1951, the General Committee adopted a Thai resolution recommending that the Assembly reject the Soviet request to include the question of Chinese representation on the agenda for the sixth session. After Secretary Acheson's remarks, the Assembly accepted the General Committee's recommendation (Nov. 13, 1951). See United States Participation in the United Nations; Report by the President to the Congress for the Year 1951 (Department of State publication 4583; 1952), pp. 83–84. |