710. Consultation 4/8–1547: Telegham
The Chairman of the United States Delegation (Marshall) to the Acting Secretary of State
8. For Lincoln White from McDermott.61 Secretary of State and Chairman of the United States Delegation made the following stmt on Aug 15.
In their replies to the recent consultations concerning the treaty to be signed at Rio de Janeiro a majority of the American Republics expressed the opinion that decisions for collective measures should be obligatory on all parties to the treaty.
The United States is anxious to contribute in every possible way to the formulation of a treaty of maximum effectiveness, and has been encouraged by the results of the consultation to review its position regarding obligatory decisions.
It is now the intention of the United States Delegation to submit a revised draft in which it will propose that those collective measures specifically mentioned in the Act of Chapultepec shall be obligatory on all contracting parties when agreed upon in consultation by a vote of two-thirds of the parties, with the sole exception that no state shall be required to furnish armed forces without its consent.
Marshall
- Michael J. McDermott, Special Assistant to the Secretary of State for Press Relations, and Press Relations Officer at the Conference. Lincoln White was Executive Assistant to Mr. McDermott in the Department.↩