Cablegram 283 PARIS, 123 December 1948], 11.10 p.m.
IMMEDIATE SECRET
Please see our en clair telegram [1] reporting this afternoon’s proceedings particularly Malik.
Subsequent to Malik’s speech I have spoken to representatives of the United States, United Kingdom, Argentina, Canada, Colombia and Syria.
1. Cease-fire will be carried.
2. Withdrawal will probably be carried out although this is more doubtful in view of the attitude of Canada.
3. The United States not having received information from the State Department as to acceptance of our amendments would at present stage be prepared to drop their final paragraph and accept ours.
4. Our amendment as to release of political prisoners and instructions to Committee of Good Offices to observe and report have general support and are likely to be carried.
5. United Kingdom have received new instructions which bring them much closer to United States position and to agreement with basic ideas of our amendment.
6. Soviet proposals are likely to be defeated because Council generally will not accept Commission which will have Soviet Union and Ukraine as members with the same effects on its operative efficiency as before. Those parts of Soviet resolution specifically referring to Chapter 7 and the Dutch as aggressors likely to be too strong for Council acceptance. It will be noted from report of Malik’s remarks that most of his objections to the United States draft will be removed by our amendments.
7. I have discussed with Jessup action which will be proposed next week when immediate short term problem of putting end to hostilities has been disposed of. He agreed with my suggestion that consideration must be given to increasing powers of Committee of Good Offices which itself might be somewhat enlarged to enable it to take more direct and positive part in negotiations between parties on such subjects as elections etc. with view to establishment as soon as possible of U.S.I. Jessup is disturbed at the quality of Council which has six alternates acting. This is and will delay proceedings because they have no discretion to compromise on instructions and must constantly communicate with Governments.
8. Palar approached Malik after he had spoken this afternoon and impressed upon him the need for Soviet support for the final resolution. Malik reassured him that he understood the difficulty in view of the lineup in the Council whereby it may just be possible that Malik’s abstention would lead to cultivation [2] of resolution which was anything more than a token expression of opinion. He has undertaken to cable for fresh instructions but is not hopeful of the result.
Your telegram No.P.290 [3] which in any case did not arrive until after I had spoken was impracticable as when I spoke only two members of Council (United States and China) had spoken. We cannot put any matter to the vote unless supported by members [and] there would have been grave objections as a number of members are still on [list]. [4]
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1 See Document 453.
2 The word ‘cultivation’ should presumably read ‘defeat’.
3 Document 436.
4 Words in square brackets in the preceding sentence have been inserted from a copy on file AA:A4387/2, A/48/19H.
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[AA:A1838, 854/10/4/3, iiib]