Cablegram 945 CANBERRA, 6 August 1947, 12 noon
MOST IMMEDIATE
Your 1037. [1]
Please discuss with Hodgson message just despatched to him. [2] Romulo is proposing arbitration by a number of countries and this is what we anticipated and it should make your approaches to the Americans easier as they will realise that such arbitration must at all costs be avoided. The United States Government should also realise that it is not a question of good offices it is now a question of arbitration. The Security Council decision was in those terms. They should realise the responsibility they are singly undertaking.
2. This is a matter which should be followed up at all levels but the main effort should be on the highest level and the interview by Forsyth of the Acting Deputy Director of the European Division does not take the matter sufficiently high to arrive at the point of decision in a case such as this in which hour by hour decisions are being taken.
3. The Prime Minister and the Minister for External Affairs confirm that we should make every endeavour to achieve American- Australian arbitration.
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1 Document 243.
2 Document 247.
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[AA:A33300/2, 441]