840.50 UNRRA/3–2746: Telegram
The Acting Secretary of State to the United States Political Adviser for Austria (Erhardt)
308. Pls inform Gen Clark following resolution adopted yesterday by UNRRA Council, over Soviet opposition and with Fr abstaining.
“Whereas Section 2a of Article 1 of the UNRRA agreement sets forth as a primary purpose of UNRRA that in areas in which it operates it shall provide food, fuel, clothing, shelter and other basic necessities, medical and other essential services, and shall facilitate in such areas, so far as necessary to the adequate provision of relief, the production and transportation of these articles and the furnishing of these services, and
Whereas the use or requisitioning by foreign military forces of local relief supplies or land or other resources for their production in such areas will tend to defeat the purpose of UNRRA as stated above, and
Whereas, such use of requisitioning by decreasing local relief supplies will put an additional burden on the resources of UNRRA in its efforts to provide adequate relief
Resolved, 1. That the council recommend that member Governments maintaining military forces in other countries receiving relief from UNRRA direct their forces to refrain from
- (a)
- Consuming locally produced foodstuffs (other than fresh fruits and vegetables of a perishable nature which are in temporary local surplus), fuel or other supplies which are normally included in an UNRRA program, or using land or other local resources which could be utilized for the production of supplies to meet the relief needs of the local population, and
- (b)
- Impeding in any way the equitable distribution of imported and indigenous relief supplies, or the effective use of land or local resources for the production of such supplies.
2. That the administration shall establish programs for such countries on the assumption that all such military forces of member Governments [Page 324] will, in fact, carry out the recommendation set forth in 1 above.”
Sanction provision included in original proposed resolution (Deptel of Mar 21) still under discussion. Will inform you of outcome.