Office of the Historian

166. Telegram From the Mission at the United Nations to the Department of State1

New York, November 16, 1955—10 p.m.

Delga 302. Re membership. Crowe (Canada)2 informed Gadel officer that Canadian resolution (Delga 2663) was tabled this evening with 25 co-sponsors. Resolution has been revised to substitute phrase “widest possible membership” for word “universality” in preambular para one and operative para two. List of co-sponsors are:

Afghanistan, Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Burma, Canada, Colombia, Costa Rica, Denmark, Iceland, India, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Lebanon, Liberia, New Zealand, Norway, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Sweden, Syria, Thailand, Yemen, Yugoslavia.

Crowe said that timing of consideration of the membership item in ad hoc comite is still flexible, and it is not their intention to press it at the moment.

Martin called Lodge to inform him of changes in resolution and fact that resolution was tabled. Martin informed Lodge that he told press he was satisfied, after talking with a number of delegations, that situation on membership had clarified. We are not all agreed, Martin said, but our objective is the same. There is no competitive arrangement and everyone is cognizant of responsibility of great powers.

Kuznetsov phoned Martin that he wanted to see him tonight, but Martin said he couldn’t make it.

Lodge made emphatic statement to Martin on catastrophic results if membership solution collapsed as result of Chinese veto, (see mytel Delga 3014). He stressed how terrible it would be to have [Page 370] Anglo-American breach resulting from fact that Chinese representation issue might be reopened this session if China vetoed Outer Mongolia, and that Canadians could not ignore this. Martin said they had carefully considered that aspect and had told Chinese they will have to bear consequences. Lodge emphasized that Chinese would not have to bear consequences, but it would be the US and Canadians ought to help US. Martin however, merely said he would think about it.

Lodge
  1. Source: Department of State, Central Files, 310.2/11–1655. Confidential.↩
  2. M.A. Crowe, member of the Canadian Delegation to the United Nations and Alternate Canadian Representative on the U.N. Disarmament Commission.↩
  3. Document 154.↩
  4. Supra.↩