Foreign Relations of the United States, 1947, General; The United Nations, Volume I

501.BC Armaments/5–647: Telegram

The United States Representative at the United Nations (Austin) to the Secretary of State

restricted

New York, May 6, 1947—10:20 p.m.

427. For Joseph E. Johnson from Bard.¹ The following text of a plan of work for the CCA has been prepared in the light of Bard’s draft of May 1,² Department’s 200 of May 2, 2 p.m.,³ and comments by Blaisdell. It is proposed to use this text at the next meeting of the CCA subcommittee to prepare a draft plan of work, and it will be discussed informally with other representatives on CCA prior to that meeting, time for which has not yet been set.⁴

Text follows:

draft plan of work for the commission

I. Substantive problems to be considered

(1) Consider and make recommendations to the Security Council concerning armaments and armed forces which fall within the jurisdiction of the CCA.

(2) Consideration and determination of general principles in connection with the regulation and reduction of armaments and armed forces.

(3) Consideration of practical and effective safeguards by means of an international system of control operating through special organs (and by other means to protect complying states against violations and evasions).

(4) Consider practical proposals for the regulation and reduction of armaments and armed forces.

(5) Submission of a report or reports to the Security Council.

It is proposed that under the five headings listed above all of the references by the various delegations suggested for the plan of work will be considered.

It is also understood that this plan of work does not limit the freedom of individual delegations to make additional suggestions at a later time.

II. Organization

(1) Establishment of a working committee of the whole to deal with the political aspects of security and to supervise and coordinate the work of the subcommittees.

(2) Establishment of a subcommittee to study the technical aspects of safeguards and any other problems referred to them by the working committee. This committee would report to the working committee.

These suggestions are not intended to preclude the formation of other subcommittees if and when they are needed. The committees mentioned are merely those which appear to be necessary during the initial stages of the Commission’s work.

[Bard]
Austin

1. Ralph A. Bard, Deputy United States Representative on the United Nations Commission for Conventional Armaments.
2. Not printed.
3. Supra.
4. In telegram 209 to New York, May 8, the Department indicated that the draft contained in the present telegram conformed with United States policy and had the full approval of the Executive Committee on the Regulation of Armaments (501.BC Armaments/4–2547).