Foreign Relations of the United States, Diplomatic Papers, 1945, General: The United Nations, Volume I

Hyde Park 244

Memorandum by the Secretary of State to President Roosevelt ⁵⁷

Washington, April 9, 1945.

Attached hereto is the paper on international trusteeships which was referred to in my telegram to you of today’s date⁵⁸ on this subject.

E. R. Stettinius, Jr.

[Annex]

Note for the President

Washington, April 9, 1945.

I understand that this draft,⁵⁹ which was worked out with representatives of the War and Navy Departments, would probably be acceptable to them if the following two changes were made:

(1) State specifically that the territories to be brought under the Trusteeship System as well as the terms, would in each case be a matter for subsequent agreement. We, of course, agree on this since it is in accord with the Yalta agreement and is stated in another way in Section B, Paragraph 1.

(2) They propose that the Security Council should be substituted for the General Assembly in all matters pertaining to strategic areas under the Trusteeship arrangements specified in Sections B, C, D, E and F. This should present no insuperable difficulty.

57. Copy obtained from the Franklin D. Roosevelt Library, Hyde Park, N.Y. A covering memorandum of the same date by Secretary Stettinius for Miss Grace Tully, President Roosevelt’s secretary, stated: “I don’t believe the President will need to bother studying the attached, but I wanted to be sure it was available in your hands, in the event he asked for it.”
58. Supra.
59. Draft D–lk, March 22, not printed; it is identical with draft SC–79, March 17, Arrangements for International Trusteeship, p. 135, with exception of section C (1), Structure and Procedures, which reads: “1. The functions of the Organization with respect to the trusteeship system should be exercised as specified in Sections E, F, G, and H. The General Assembly and the Trusteeship Council should each act by a two-thirds vote of those present and voting. With respect to matters concerning strategic areas, the Security Council should act with the concurrence of all of the permanent members.”