Cablegram 268 CANBERRA, 29 July 1947, 2 p.m.
IMMEDIATE SECRET
Indonesia.
1. Thanks your 225. [1] We have now been advised that India proposes to raise matter in Security Council.
2. You will appreciate that the whole of our tactics have to some degree depended upon the reactions of various countries which are taking a direct interest in this matter, and the advice given to us through you by Bevin and Addison (your telegram 295 [2]) that India did not want to see the Indonesian question before the Security Council was one factor taken into consideration in determining our policy. You will recall that in our No. 260 [3] we queried this information and in your 223 [4] it was substantiated.
3. While the announcement that India proposes to approach the Security Council is embarrassing to some extent, it has been decided not to take immediate action, but still to wait until Wednesday as we have already agreed with the United Kingdom Government.
4. The move by India may have the unfortunate effect we anticipated in over-emphasising the Asiatic versus western nature of the Indonesian conflict. In our view, this can now be minimised by the least possible obstruction from a procedural point of view in having the matter admitted to the agenda of the Security Council. For our part, we must support and hope that the United Kingdom Government will do so without hesitation and do its best to persuade the United States Government to act similarly. The plain fact is that warfare is going on, that Indonesians have been accorded by the Dutch, United Kingdom, United States, ourselves, and others de facto recognition and that, in any case, the conflict is having most severe repercussions in many countries of the world. A claim that it is a matter of domestic jurisdiction may conceivably have some legal support, though we doubt it, but for political reasons we cannot imagine that it would be seriously advanced.
5. We have hopes that, with this United Kingdom support on the procedural issue, the two parties can be immediately persuaded to act on Article 17 of the Linggadjati Agreement, which provides for mediation by a third party, and in that way the objective of United States - United Kingdom negotiations would be achieved immediately and without unnecessary debate on the merits of the case.
6. We assume you will see as quickly as we do outgoing messages from the United Kingdom Government, and we will keep you fully informed, but the time factor within the next two days may make this difficult in every instance. meanwhile, every endeavour might be made to persuade the United Kingdom Government to support us on the procedural issue.
_
1 Dispatched on 28 July, it advised that Beasley was ‘on the doorstep’ awaiting a response to Document 174.
2 Document 141.
3 See Document 152, note 1.
4 Document 152.
_
[AA:A1838/274, 854/10/4, i]