Foreign Relations of the United States, 1948, The Near East, South Asia, and Africa, Volume V, Part 2

501.BB Palestine/3–1848: Telegram

The Acting Secretary of State to the Embassy in the United Kingdom

top secret   us urgent
niact

Washington, March 18, 1948—2 p. m.

953. Following is text of draft working paper on Palestine¹ to which Deptel 952 today refers:

“I

The consultations among the permanent members of the SC and informal communication with the Palestine Commission, the mandatory power, the JA and the AHC held since March 5, 1948 have developed the following facts regarding the situation with respect to Palestine:

1. The JA accepts the partition plan, considers it to be the irreducible minimum acceptable to the Jews, and insists upon the implementation of the plan without substantial modification.

2. The AHC rejects any solution based on partition in any form and considers that the only solution acceptable to the Arabs of Palestine is the formation of one independent state for the whole of Palestine whose constitution would be based on democratic principles and which would include adequate safeguards for minorities and the safety of the holy places.

3. No modifications in the essentials of the partition, plan are acceptable to the JA and no modifications would make the plan acceptable to the AHC.

4. The Palestine Commission, the mandatory power, the JA and the AHC have indicated that the partition plan cannot be implemented by peaceful means under present conditions.

5. The plan proposed by the GA is an integral plan which cannot succeed unless each of its parts can be carried out. There seems to be general agreement that the plan cannot now be implemented by peaceful means. This being so, the SC is not in a position to go ahead with efforts to implement this plan [in the existing situation.²]

6. The mandatory power has confirmed that a considerable number of illegal arms and hostile elements have entered Palestine both by land and by sea since November 29, 1947.

7. The gradual withdrawal of the military forces of the mandatory power will, in the absence of agreement, result in increasing violence and disorder in Palestine. Warfare of a guerrilla type grows more violent constantly.

8. If the mandate is terminated prior to a peaceful solution of the problem, large-scale fighting between the two communities can be expected.

II

1. As a result of their consultations regarding the situation with respect to Palestine, the permanent members find and report that a continuation of the infiltration into Palestine by land and by sea of groups and persons with the purpose of taking part in violence would aggravate still further the situation, and recommend:

(a) That the SC should make it clear to the parties and governments concerned that the SC is determined not to permit the situation in Palestine to threaten international peace, and

(b) That the SC should take further action by all means available to it to bring about the immediate cessation of violence and the restoration of peace and order in Palestine.

3[2]. Under the charter the SC has both an inescapable responsibility as well as full authority to take the steps necessary to bring about a cease fire in Palestine and a halt to the incursions being made into that country. The powers of Articles 39, 40, 41 and 42 are very great and the council should not hesitate to use them if necessary to stop the fighting.

4[3]. In addition, we believe that further steps must be taken immediately not only to maintain the peace but also to afford a further opportunity to reach an agreement between the interested parties regarding the future government of Palestine. To this end we believe that a temporary trusteeship for Palestine should be established under the TC of the UN. Such a UN trusteeship would be without prejudice to the rights, claims or position of the parties concerned or to the character of the eventual political settlement, which we hope can be achieved without long delay. In our opinion, the SC should recommend the establishment of such a trusteeship to the GA and to the mandatory power. This would require an immediate special session of the GA, which the SC should request the SYG to convoke under Article 20 of the charter.

5[4]. Pending the meeting of the proposed special session of the GA, we believe that the SC should instruct the Palestine Commission to suspend its efforts to implement the proposed partition plan.”³

Repeated Paris as 857, Nanking as 415.

Thorp

1. Sent to the Department by New York in telegram 309, March 17, 11:30 p. m. (501.BB Pales tine/3–1748). The Department made minor language changes, and divided the twelve numbered paragraphs into two sections, before sending telegram 953.
2. Bracketed portion in the source text.
3. Ambassador Austin made a statement before the Security Council on March 19 on the results of the consultations among the permanent members of the Council. The substantive portion of his statement, which had the agreement of China and France, followed closely telegram 953, except for the omission of paragraph 5 of Section I and all of Section II except for paragraph 1. Ambassador Gromyko then gave his report to the Council on the consultations. He noted at one point that he had agreed to the decisions made in sub-paragraphs a and b of Section II of Ambassador Austin’s statement, although the United States Representative had not pointed out this fact. For the texts of the statements by Ambassador Austin and Ambassador Gromyko, see SC, 3rd yr., Nos. 36–51, pp. 141–143 and 143–148, respectively.