Cablegram 268 NEW DELHI, 30 June 1948, 7 p.m.
IMPORTANT
The Indian Government’s concern over the deteriorating position in Indonesia has been formally conveyed to me by the Foreign Secretary (K.P.S. Menon). Referring to the breakdown in negotiations, he expressed the hope that Australia will persist in her efforts to bring about settlement. He has no knowledge of what the Australian-American proposals [1] involved other than an Indonesian release of 19th June. According to this the plan in essence provided for the election of a constituent assembly, which would also be a provisional legislature, and would form an interim government to whom the Netherlands and the Republic would transfer full power the exercise of which would be subject only to a limited veto on the part of the Governor-General.
The Indian Government considers that the proposals, if correctly reported, provide a very reasonable basis for settlement; they are regarded as constructive and satisfactory erring, if at all, on the side of being conservative.
The Indian Government would appreciate your official version of the proposals together with any observations you may feel able to offer with respect to the present situation.
A subsequent telegram covers other subjects dealt with in the interview. [2]
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1 Document 173.
2 Not published.
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[AA:A5009/2, A7/3/13, i]