840.50/1825
The Assistant Secretary of State (Acheson) to the Minister Counselor of the Canadian Legation (Pearson)
Dear Mr. Pearson: I am now in a position to reply to your letter of April 13, 1943 and to give you information which I hope will meet fully the concern of your Government with respect to the draft agreement for a United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration.
At a meeting of the representatives of the British Government, the Soviet Government, and the Chinese Government and this Government on April 12, 1943, I read for the information of those present the text of your letter of April 8. All of those present expressed their gratification at the willingness of the Canadian Government to cooperate with the plan set forth in the draft agreement. At the same time they took cognizance of the statement that Canadian acceptance of the proposed plan is based on the following points of understanding: (a) that the prospective members of the Central Committee will use their best endeavors to secure the selection of a Canadian as chairman of the Committee on Supplies; (b) that in the view of the Canadian Government the four-Power pattern is not in principle an acceptable form of international organization; (c) that in its view representation on international bodies should whenever possible be determined on a functional basis; and (d) that the Canadian Government does not regard the proposed form of the Central Committee as a precedent in other connections.
As you point out in your letter of April 13, there seems to be no need for comment on points (b) and (c) as listed above. With regard to point (d) I believe I can say that there has been nothing in the discussions of the representatives of the four Powers to indicate that any of those Powers take the position that the form of organization proposed in the draft agreement for a relief and rehabilitation administration would in any sense set a precedent for the form of any other international organization. With respect to point (a) I can say that the representatives of the other three Governments have been empowered to join with me in stating that the four Powers will use their best endeavors to secure the selection of a Canadian as chairman of the Committee on Supplies of the Council.
In view of the statements made above I suppose that this communication can be considered as a satisfactory conclusion of the discussion of these matters that has taken place between your Government and my Government, and that no further response is required on the part of the Department of State to the Canadian Legation’s memorandum [Page 912] of February 9, 1943 which you placed before the Under Secretary of State, Mr. Welles, on February 10.
Sincerely yours,