501.BB Palestine/2–2648: Telegram
The United States Representative at the United Nations (Austin) to the Secretary of State
214. For Lovett from Rusk. In private meeting this afternoon among Austin, Parodi [France], McNaughton [Canada], Pearson [Canada], Nisot (Belgium), Ignatieff (Canada) and Rusk, Parodi and Nisot raised a number of objections to the proposed US resolution on Palestine. The substance of their objections was (a) that SC should [Page 662] not accept the partition plan of the GA resolution prior to the investigations to be carried out by the committee of the permanent members, since without such investigations SC could not know the effect of the recommendation upon the maintenance of international peace and security; (b) that the SC should not accept in advance the standard as to what constitutes a threat to the peace set forth in request (c) of the GA resolution. It was clear from Nisot’s remarks that Belgium does not wish to approve partition again at this point in the light of the changed conditions which have arisen since November 29. Both Parodi and Nisot hinted that they might not be able to support the US resolution unless their amendments were accepted.
Austin informed them that we considered it important for the SC to establish a frame of reference for the work of the proposed committee, based on the GA recommendation; that we were confident that our phrase “subject to the authority of the SC under the charter” took care of any inference that the SC would be exceeding its powers by accepting the request of the GA.
Austin stated that he felt certain that we were after the same objectives and that he hoped agreeable language could be found to meet their views. He added however, that he could not say whether the US could agree to any such amendments since the matter was one which would have to be referred to the Department for further instructions. [Rusk.]