Cablegram 200 WELLINGTON, 7 November 1944, 3.30 a.m.
IMPORTANT SECRET
My No. 199. [1] Resolutions begin-
I. General International Organisation:
1. Australia and New Zealand desire to play their full part in the establishment of a general International Organisation for the purpose of preserving International peace and security and promoting human welfare.
2. In order that such an Organisation may bring into being an effective and lasting system of collective security, all the Members should pledge themselves to co-operate in carrying out, by force if need be, the decisions of the Organisation for the preservation of peace.
3. The Charter of the Organisation should make clear to the peoples of the World the principles on which the action of the Organisation is to be based.
4. it should be a positive principle of the Organisation, openly declared and binding upon all Members, that the Territorial integrity and political independence of Members should be preserved against change by force or threat of force from another Power. Provision should be made by the Organisation for facilitating the orderly change of situations, the continuance of which might endanger the peace of the World.
5. The Charter of the Organisation should embody the essential principles of the Atlantic Charter and the Philadelphia Declaration. [2]
6. The Organisation should be open to all Sovereign States subject to approval of their submission by the Assembly.
7. The success of such an Organisation will depend upon the Leadership of the Greater Powers, but it is essential that all Members should actively participate in the general control and direction of its affairs. To this end, the powers and functions of the Assembly should be such as to enable it at any of its meetings to deal with any matter within the sphere of action of the Organisation, subject only to the Executive Powers of the Security Council in regard to the settlement of disputes and the action to be taken against an aggressor.
8. There should be the maximum employment of the International Court of Justice for the ascertainment of facts which may be in dispute.
9. The Security Council should be limited in numbers, while being as representative as possible, and for the purpose of preserving security should be vested with wide powers.
10. The specialised Bodies set up separately for various purposes of International welfare should be brought within the framework of the Organisation.
11. Powers responsible for dependent Territories should accept the principle of Trusteeship, already applicable in the case of Mandated Territories. In such dependent Territories the purpose of the Trust is the welfare and advancement of the Native Peoples.
Colonial Powers should undertake to make regular reports to an International Body analogous to the permanent Mandates Commission, set up within the framework of the General Organisation. This body should be empowered to publish reports of its deliberations and to inspect dependent Territories.
12. For the new Organisation to fulfil its task, the condition underlying all others is that the Members should fully honour the obligations which they assume.
II Armistice Arrangements:
1. The Conference has noted the communications which have been exchanged on the subject of Armistice arrangements in Europe. It considers that the Dominions and other Nations which have been actively engaged from the beginning in the war against the Axis Powers, and have contributed and are contributing materially to their defeat both on the European Fronts and in other theatres of war, are entitled to an effective voice in the conclusion of the European Armistices and the preparations for the Peace Settlements and participation in their own right in the control of the Armistice machinery.
2. In the interests of solidarity of the United Nations, both Australia and New Zealand have felt obliged to acquiesce in their exclusion from those arrangements in Europe even though settlements of vital concern have been involved, but they cannot acquiesce in a similar situation in the Pacific and Far East.
3. Australia and New Zealand are agreed that they should take the strongest possible action to ensure that their Governments are consulted in regard to the drafting of Armistices with Japan and Thailand, that they are represented directly at the conclusion of the Armistices and that they have the right of participating in the Armistice control arrangements.
4. As a step in promoting this agreed policy the New Zealand Representatives proposed and the Conference approved that the Australian Minister for External Affairs should visit the United States and the United Kingdom for the purpose of making personal representations on the matter in the appropriate quarters.
5. Noting Clauses 7 to 11 of the Australian - New Zealand Agreement [3] and the work already done, the two Governments agree that they will proceed further with the co-ordination of their Armistice and Post-hostilities planning.
III. Pacific Questions:
The Conference has considered the procedure for summoning the
International Conference relating to the South and South-west Pacific, provided for in Clause 34 of the Australian - New Zealand Agreement. The New Zealand Representatives proposed and the Conference approved that in the first instance the Australian Minister for External Affairs should take the earliest opportunity of discussing in Washington and in London with the appropriate Authorities the convening of this Conference at an early date.
IV. South Seas Regional Commission:
1. Immediate steps should be taken to establish the South Seas Regional Commission at the earliest possible date.
2. The general form of the Organisation of the South Seas Regional Commission should be as follows- (a) The Commission proper which should consist of Representatives of the Governments and Administrations in the Region.
(b) A Secretariat.
(c) Research and functional bodies established by the Member Governments on the advice of the Commission.
3. Provision should be made for associating with the work of the Commission existing Research and Functional Bodies.
4. There should be held regularly a South Seas Conference for the discussion of Pacific Islands problems. This Conference might comprise nominees of Governments represented on the Commission (these nominees to represent Administrations, Scientific Bodies, Missionary Bodies and Native Peoples), together with nominees of International Organisations concerned with welfare problems (e.g.
the I.L.O. and the Food and Agricultural Organisation).
5. The Native Peoples shall, wherever practicable, be enabled to take part in the work of the Commission and its Agencies.
6. An immediate approach should be made by the Australian and New Zealand Governments to the United Kingdom in regard to the establishment of the Commission.
V. Welfare Relations:
1. General Policy: We reaffirm our understanding reached between the two Governments at Canberra in an exchange of letters dated the 24th January 1944 [4], namely that the following five points fairly express our common point of view:-
(i) Because a high level of employment is a fundamental condition of better standards of living throughout the world, it is agreed to press strongly for an International Agreement by which- (a) subscribing Countries will bind themselves to pursue Domestic policies aimed at full employment; and (b) existing organisations (such as the I.L.O.) will be used, or a new International Organisation established, to facilitate the exchange of information and consultation with each other on employment policy, and generally to give effect to the International Agreement.
(ii) During the immediate post-war period the economic situation will be in a state of flux, and the economic policies of all Countries will still be unsettled. It is agreed, therefore, to advocate and support such forms of International economic collaboration in the transition period as should make it unnecessary for Countries to adopt policies of aggressive economic nationalism.
(iii) Every effort should be made to obtain as a permanent feature of International economic relations, a maximum degree of collaboration. However, because of the uncertainty of the economic future it may be impracticable at the outset for many Countries to accept inflexible obligations of a far-reaching character. In such circumstances it is desirable, as a preliminary step, that limited agreements should be sought which would provide at least for regular consultations between Nations. These may well lead progressively to more comprehensive agreements.
(iv) It is necessary for Countries which are not fully developed or highly dependent upon a narrow range of exports to be able under any agreement- (a) to use such economic measures, exchange measures, for example, import selection, exchange control, State Trading and British Commonwealth preferences, as may, from time to time, prove necessary to ensure continued stability. The need for these measures will decrease to the extent that International collaboration proves successful;
(b) to develop and diversify their industries.
(v) All agreements affecting Australia and New Zealand should take into special account the dislocations and developments which have been made necessary by their total war efforts, and also of accumulated needs resulting from the prolonged diversion from their peacetime production.
We affirm further that while the commencement of discussions on various proposals for International economic collaboration are a matter of immediate concern, the introduction and operation of an employment agreement should take precedence over the implementation of all other proposals in the welfare field, and that discussion and final agreement on these other proposals should be in relation to the full employment objective.
2. Employment Agreement: We regard an employment Agreement by which Signatories undertake to pursue internal policies of full employment and improved living standards as fundamental to the success of all aspects of International collaboration designed to promote human welfare. The calling of an Employment Conference with this objective in view should take precedence over all other International Economic Discussions.
We propose, therefore, to approach the United States Government with the proposal that a Conference be called by the United States Government, in conjunction with the United Kingdom, Australian and New Zealand Governments.
3. Discussions between Officials: The following matters shall be examined at the earliest possible date, and arrangements will be made through the Australian - New Zealand Secretariats in accordance with Article 35(E) and Article 37 of the Australian - New Zealand Agreement for immediate discussions by Officials in the first instance- (A) International economic collaboration:
(i) Preparation for Employment Conference.
(ii) Commercial Policy proposals.
(iii) Commodity Policy proposals.
(iv) Proposals for control of Cartels.
(v) Proposed Wool Conference.
(vi) Any other United Nations proposal in the welfare field, including matters arising out of the Relief Administration and the Food and Agricultural Organisation.
(B) Australian and New Zealand Relations:
(i) Development of Trade.
(ii) Joint Planning of Industrial Development.
(iii) Shipping.
(iv) Co-ordination of policies with regard to exports of primary products to the United Kingdom.
(v) Application of Internal price stabilisation Policies to Australian - New Zealand trade.
(vi) Development of post-war trade in the Pacific. [5]
(vii) Exchange of information on Australian and New Zealand post- war planning, including means of maintaining high levels of employment, housing programmes, Regional and Town Planning, Re- establishment proposals. [6]
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1 Dispatched 6 November. On file AA:A989, 44/630/5/1/11/17. It noted that the text of the resolutions of the Wellington Conference was, at Evatt’s request, to have limited circulation and requested that a copy be handed to the N.Z. High Commissioner and advised that, with the exception of Resolution II, paragraph 4 and Resolution III, the text had been made available to the U.K.
and Canadian High Commissioners (W.A. Riddell) in Wellington.
2 i.e. the Declaration concerning the Aims and Purposes of the International Labour Organization unanimously approved at the 26th I.L.O. Conference at Philadelphia.
3 Document 26.
4 Documents 28 and 29.
5 The paragraphs published here are numbered as in the original, although the order of (vi) and (vii) was reversed.
6 The official report of the conference, dated 6 November and embodying these resolutions, (on file AA:A989, 44/630/5/1/11/13) was approved by Full Cabinet on 10 November. See AA:A2703, vol. 2, agendum 509A.
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[AA:A989, 44/630/5/1/11/17]