Foreign Relations of the United States, 1946, Paris Peace Conference: Proceedings, Volume III

CFM Files

United States Delegation Journal

October 1, 1946, 10 a.m.

USDel (PC) (Journal) 58

The Rapporteur made a statement (CP(IT/P) Doc 101)²² to the Commission recalling the types of recommendations which might be made by the Commission to the Conference under the rules and asking for majority and minority reports on the several articles requiring them by not later than Midday Wednesday in order that they might be included in the Rapporteur’s report to be circulated on Thursday. The Chairman outlined the Commission’s schedule for the remainder of the week as follows:

Tuesday afternoon and Wednesday—discussion of Article 16 and the Statute for Trieste

Thursday—to be left free for the Rapporteur’s report

Friday and Saturday morning—discussion of his report and its final adoption.

The representative of Yugoslavia introduced and then spoke in favor of his Delegation’s amendment (CP(IT/P) Doc 96)²² to Article 78 which would provide that the treaty comes into effect when ratified by the four sponsoring powers and by “the Allied and Associated Powers who are neighbors of Italy and whose territory was occupied by Italy”. The amendment was defeated by 13 votes to 5, with two abstentions. The Australian Delegation withdrew the deferred portion of its amendment (CP(IT/P) Doc 15) [C.P.(Gen)Doc, 1. B. 1] to the preamble relating to human rights and the Commission thereafter adopted the 5th paragraph of the preamble.

The Commission then considered the report of the Subcommittee on the Yugoslav amendment for a new Article 11(a) (CP(IT/P) Doc 100) concerning the restitution to Yugoslavia of archives and objects of artistic, historic and religious value with respect to that portion of the territory Italy will cede to Yugoslavia. After some discussion among the British, Soviet and Yugoslav Delegates a modification of the Subcommittee’s redraft of the amendment was accepted in the following sense: in paragraph 2 of the revised draft amendment, first line after the words “all objects” add “of public legal character”. That portion of the amendment (Doc 100) creating a new Article 11(a) was adopted by the Commission by 19 votes to 1, the U.S. casting the negative vote. That part of the report (Doc 100) amending the first paragraph of Annex 3 was adopted unanimously.²³

The Chairman read a report from the Military Commission regarding the use of the words “demilitarization” and “complete demilitarization” in Articles 11, 12 and 42.²⁴ It was the recommendation of the Military Commission that the word “demilitarization” be used uniformly in all three articles and that a description of “demilitarization” as included in the Military Commission’s report should be attached to the treaty as Annex 5D. The Military Commission’s report was accepted and the Ukraine amendment (CP(Gen)Doc 1.R.1) to Article 12 was withdrawn. Consequently the second sentence of Article 12 (which had been deferred—see Journal No. 48, September 21) was adopted unanimously by the Commission with a Soviet reservation regarding the Greek amendment to this article referring to certain Greek-Turkish agreements.²⁵

The report of the Legal and Drafting Commission on the Yugoslav amendment for a new Article 13(a) (CP(IT/P) Doc 102) providing for the option by Italian citizens of Yugoslav citizenship and their subsequent removal to Yugoslavia was next considered. The Yugoslav Delegation proposed an additional paragraph 3 to the report of the Legal and Drafting Committee which reads as follows: “All provisions applying to persons who opt for Italian nationality under Annex 3(6) shall equally apply to the transfer of properties belonging to persons who opt for Yugoslav nationality according to this Article.” The Chairman suggested that the Commission vote on the entire article and, in view of the economic implications of the new paragraph proposed by the Yugoslavs, it be referred to the Economic Commission. The Yugoslav amendment, as redrafted by the Legal and Drafting Commission, (Doc. 102) was adopted by the Commission by a vote of 19 to 1. The U.S. vote, in the affirmative, was conditioned on the approval of the last paragraph (5) by the Economic Commission for Italy.²⁶

22. Not printed.
22. Not printed.
23. C.P. (IT/P) Doc. 100 is not printed. For text of the new article 11a and for text of the first paragraph of Annex 3 as amended, see C.P.(Plen) Doc. 24, report of the Commission, vol. iv, pp. 309 and 310, respectively.
24. For text of the Military Commission’s interpretation, see footnote 34, p. 613.
25. See the United States Delegation Journal account of the 28th Meeting, September 21, p. 501.
26. For text of the new article 13 a adopted here, see C.P. (Plen) Doc. 24, Report of the Political and Territorial Commission for Italy, vol. iv, p. 312. See also C.P. (Plen) Doc. 28, Report of the Legal and Drafting Commission on the Draft Peace Treaty with Italy, ibid., pp. 419, 428, and the United States Delegation Journal account of the 33rd Meeting of the Economic Commission for Italy, October 2, p. 630.