Council of Foreign Ministers Files: Lot M–88: CFM London Minutes
Record of the Sixth Meeting of the Council of Foreign Ministers, Lancaster House, London, September 17, 1945, 11 a.m.
Present
| U.K. | U.S.A | U.S.S.R |
| Mr. Bevin | Mr. Byrnes | M. Molotov |
| Sir R. I. Campbell | Mr. B. V. Cohen | M. F. T. Gousev |
| Sir A. Clark Kerr | Mr. J. Dunn | M. K. V. Novikov |
| Sir Noel Charles | Mr. J. F. Dulles | Mr. S. A. Golunski |
| Mr. C. E. Bohlen |
| France | China |
| M. Bidault | Dr. Wang Shih Chieh |
| M. Couve de Murville | Dr. Wellington Koo |
| General Catroux | Dr. Hollington Tong |
| M. Alphand | Mr. Yang Yun Chu |
| Dr. Liang Yuen-Si |
1. Italian Peace Treaty: Yugoslav-Italian Frontier and Trieste
procedure for hearing views of governments of
yugoslavia, italy and british dominions
(Previous Reference: C.F.M.(P) (45) 4th Meeting, Minute 3)
Mr. Bevin said that the Governments of Yugoslavia, Italy, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa had accepted the Council’s invitation to send representatives to express their views at the Council’s meeting that afternoon on the Yugoslav-Italian frontier and Trieste.34
The Council agreed that the representatives of Yugoslavia and the three British Dominions should be present throughout the meeting that afternoon. The views of Yugoslavia should be heard first. The Italian representatives should then be invited into the Conference Room to express their views, and should then be asked to leave. The views of the three British Dominions could be stated after the Italian representatives had left.
[Page 203]2. Poland
(Previous Reference: C.F.M.(P) (45) 5th Meeting, Minute 1)
The Council agreed that the matters raised in the note from the Polish Provisional Government about the Arciszewski Government should first be dealt with through the diplomatic channel in the ordinary way, but if agreement was not reached by this means could be raised at the next Conference of the Council.
3. Control and Administration of
Germany
(Previous Reference: C.F.M.(45) (P) (45) 4th Meeting, Minute 1)
The Council agreed that the memorandum on this subject circulated by the French Delegation (C.F.M.(45) 17)35 should be added as Item 8 of the Agenda for the present Conference.
4. Italian Peace Treaty: Dodecanese
Islands
(Previous Reference: C.F.M.(P) (45) 3rd Meeting, Minute 4)
Mr. Bevin said that the British Delegation withdrew their proposal about Castelrosso and were now in agreement with the proposal of the United States Delegation that the Dodecanese Islands should be ceded to Greece and demilitarised.
M. Molotov said that all the Delegations recognised that Greece had sufficient grounds on which to substantiate a claim to these islands, and it was clear from the discussion that none of the five Powers represented on the Council claimed any of these islands. This area was, however, of great interest to the Soviet Union, in view of its proximity to the entrance to the Black Sea, and he desired that this question, including the proposal for the demilitarisation of the islands, should be given further study before a final decision was taken. He also thought that the views of the Greek Government should be ascertained. He therefore suggested that the whole question should be remitted for study by the Deputies.
M. Bidault said that the French Delegation regarded it as natural that the islands should be ceded to Greece and had no objection to their being demilitarised.
Dr. Wang said that the Chinese Delegation had no objection to the islands being ceded to Greece.
Mr. Brynes said that he was not prepared to remit to the Deputies the question of policy involved in this matter.
Further discussion followed; after which the Council agreed that further consideration of this question should be adjourned from day to day and that if no agreement were reached before the end of the present Conference, the question should be brought up for decision at the Council’s next Conference.36
[Page 204]5. Italian Peace Treaty: Armaments
The Council proceeded to consider Section IV of the memorandum by the United States Delegation (C.F.M.(45) 16)37 on Armaments.
After discussion it was agreed to accept paragraph (1) of this Section in the following amended form:—
“The maintenance of armaments for land, sea and air will be closely restricted to the necessities of (a) maintenance of order in Italian territory and local defense on Italian frontiers; (b) such military contingents, if any, in addition to the foregoing, as may be required by the Security Council”.
It was further agreed that the restrictions under (a) above would be imposed on the understanding that they would operate only until such time as they were relaxed by the Security Council of the World Organisation.
The Council took note that the French Delegation, in putting forward to the Deputies their proposals for minor rectifications of the Franco-Italian frontier, would propose that the Italian side of this frontier should be demilitarised; and that the acceptance by the French Delegation of the paragraph set out above was subject to this reservation.
The Council agreed that the Deputies, in considering in detail the relevant clauses of the draft heads of the Peace Treaty with Italy (C.F.M.(45) 3),38 should be guided by the general principles set out above.
- The Canadian and Indian Governments declined the invitation to be heard on this occasion but expressed the desire for an opportunity to be heard later on subjects of concern to them.↩
- Ante, p. 177.↩
- Regarding the discussion on the question of the disposition of the Dodecanese, see the United States delegation minutes, infra.↩
- Ante, p. 179.↩
- Ante, p. 135.↩