793.94 Commission/665: Telegram
The Minister in Switzerland (Wilson) to the Secretary of State
[Received 8:14 p.m.]
71. Herewith follows text of statement of reasons adopted this afternoon by Committee of Nineteen:
“The Assembly in its resolution of December 9th requested its Special Committee: [Page 431]
- (1)
- To study the report of the Commission of Inquiry, the observations of the parties, and the opinion[s] and suggestions expressed in the Assembly, in whatever form they were submitted.
- (2)
- To draw up proposals with a view to the settlement of the dispute brought before it under the Council resolution dated February 19, 1932.
- (3)
- To submit these proposals to the Assembly at the earliest possible moment.
If the Committee had hoped that to lay before the Assembly a picture of events and an appreciation of the general situation, it will have found all the elements necessary for such a statement in the first eight chapters of the report of the Commission of Inquiry, which in its opinion constitute a balanced, impartial and complete statement of the principal facts.
But the time has not come for such a statement. In accordance with article 15, paragraph 3, of the Covenant, the Assembly must first of all endeavor to effect a settlement of the dispute by conciliation, and if such efforts are successful, it shall publish a statement giving such facts as it may deem appropriate. If it fails, it is its duty, in virtue of paragraph 4 of the same article, to make a statement of the facts of the dispute and recommendations in regard thereto.
So long as the efforts on the basis of article 15, paragraph 3, are continued, a sense of the responsibilities placed on the Assembly in the various contingencies provided for in the Covenant obliges it to maintain a reserve. Hence the Committee has confined itself, in the draft resolution which it is today submitting to the Assembly, to making proposals with a view to conciliation.
By the Assembly’s resolution of March 11th the Special Committee was instructed to endeavor to prepare the settlement of the dispute in agreement with the parties. Since on the other hand it is desirable that the United States of America and the U.S.S.R. should join in the efforts made in collaboration with the representatives of the parties, it is proposed that the Governments of these two countries should be invited to take part in the negotiations.
In order to avoid misunderstandings and to make it plain that what is contemplated at the present stage with the cooperation of two countries not members of the League is solely the negotiation of a settlement by conciliation, the Special Committee suggests that it should be regarded for this purpose as a new committee responsible for conducting negotiations and should be authorized in this capacity to invite the Governments of the United States and the U.S.S.R. to take part in its meetings.
The Negotiations Committee will have all the powers necessary for the execution of its mission. In particular it may consult experts. It may, if it thinks fit, delegate part of its powers to one or more subcommittees or to one or more particularly qualified persons.
The members of the Negotiations Committee will be guided as regards matters of law by parts 1 and 2 of the Assembly resolution of March 11, 1932, and as regards matters of fact by the findings set out in the first eight chapters of the report of the Commission of Inquiry. As regards the solutions to be considered, they will seek them on the basis of the principles set out in chapter 9 of the report of the Commission [Page 432] of Inquiry and having regard to the suggestions made in chapter 10 of the said report.
In this connection the Committee of Nineteen considers that, in the special circumstance which characterizes the dispute, a mere return to the conditions previous to September, 1931, would not suffice to ensure a durable settlement, and that the maintenance and recognition of the new regime in Manchuria could not be regarded as a solution. December 15, 1932.”