500.A15A4 General Committee/256: Telegram
The Acting Chairman of the American Delegation (Gibson) to the Secretary of State
[Received March 27—7:30 p.m.]
595. My 593, March 25, 3 p.m.10 The morning and afternoon sessions of the General Commission completed the discussion of the British plan by practically every delegation including, today, the French, German, Spanish and Japanese. The tenor of the comments continued to be of a general nature for the most part, expressing willingness to take the British draft as a basis for future discussions. Sir John Simon closed the debate with remarks of a general character which did not attempt to reply to certain specific suggested amendments and omissions such as trade in and manufacture of arms, budgetary limitation, et cetera. I took no part in the debate.
A resolution submitted by the United Kingdom delegation (Conference Document C. G. 52) was voted this afternoon to the effect that the British draft would be the basis for subsequent discussion and that the General Commission would proceed at its next meeting after the Easter vacation to examine this draft chapter by chapter and article by article.
[Page 77]The President set Tuesday April 25 as the date for re-convening the General Commission.
The General Commission was then adjourned with this understanding that the various technical committees would function meanwhile according to the decisions of the various chairmen.
- Not printed.↩