Experience gained from the functioning of the Caribbean Commission provided a working basis for the creation of the South Pacific Commission, since four of the six participating governments at the South Seas Conference were already members of the Caribbean Commission, a similar regional organization. Delegations representing the governments which administer non-self-governing territories in the South Pacific area (Australia, France, the Netherlands, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the United States) met at the South Seas Conference at Canberra from January 28 to February 6, 1947, to prepare an agreement for the establishment of a regional commission which might aid in promoting the social and economic advancement of 2,000,000 peoples in the South Pacific. The Conference was called by the Australian and New Zealand governments in fulfilment of the Canberra Pact of January, 1944.

Allied Commission for Austria

In December, 1946, the main quadripartite decisions of the Allied Commission for Austria included progress in the solution of the food crisis, reduction of occupation costs for 1947, denazification plans and de-control of Austria's foreigntrade.

After considerable debate and disagreement over the food situation, the Allied Commission decided, on December 3, to allow free movement of food stocks, thus relaxing the previous restrictions on the export of food from the Soviet zone. A basic agreement was approved whereby the Austrian Government would present a de-tailed monthly food plan to the Allied Council; the plan was to be studied and ap-proved by the Economic Directorate in conjunction with UNRRA and the Austrian government. Accordingly, all food was to be pooled for distribution by the Austrian government in conformity with approved monthly food plans. Further 1946 recommendations concerning food centered around 1) a procedure by which food plans were to be passed through the hands of the Allied Council Food Committee, the Economic Directorate, UNRRA, the Ministry of Food, etc., based on a minimum number of days before any plan could become effective, and 2) measures to increase collection of agricultural produce. During a meeting of the Council, on January 10, the USSR agreed with the Western occupation powers to pool zonal food resources in order to bridge the 19,000 ton deficit left by slow food shipments and to maintain the 1,550-calory ration for the population. On April 24, however, it was indicated that the Soviet zone had not met its quota, although other zones had exceeded theirs.

The Council of Foreign Ministers

The fourth major session of the Council of Foreign Ministers met in Moscow from March 10 to April 24, 1947. The agenda covered six topics: 1) consideration of a report of the Allied Control Council in Germany, which included a summary of its work, a report on the establishment of a central administration, and recommendations on the liquidation of Prussia; 2) the form and scope of the provisional organization of Germany; 3) preparation of the peace treaty with Germany; 4) the United States draft four-power treaty for German disarmament and demilitarization; 5) consideration of a special report on coal; and 6) the peace treaty with Austria. Not on the agenda as prepared in New York, but brought up several times by the American representative, Secretary of State George C. Marshall, was the question of the limitation of occupation forces in Europe.

During March, 1947, meetings of the Movements Conference (ECIMOT) and the monthly Bid-Acceptance Meeting (BIDAC) were organized by the European Central Inland Transport Organization, and attended by representatives from a number of European countries and the four occupation zones of Germany and Austria. Major issues presented for discussion included detailed planning of international traffic for the month of April, and contemplated measures to meet certain difficulties, particularly with regard to the shortage of locomotives, wagons and fuel. Plans were facilitated by agreement of the USSR to allow transit through the Soviet Zone of Germany of 90 trains of ore and general freight destined for Czechoslovakia.

The Intergovernmental Committee on Refugees was authorized on July 16, 1946, by action of its Executive Committee, to extend its program of operations to include emigration services on behalf of non-repatriable refugees in Germany, Austria and Italy. Preliminary work of resettlement and actual operation insofar as practicable was thus undertaken, pending the establishment of the new International Refugee Organization, which will absorb the functions of the Committee. The scope of current activities of the Committee was extended to “all persons wherever they may be who, as a result of events in Europe, had to leave or may have to leave their countries of residence because of danger to their lives or liberties on account of race, religion or political beliefs.” Nansen refugees (formerly cared for under the League of Nations), German and Austrian refugees, Spanish refugees and displaced persons, who are unwilling or unable to return to their countries of nationality, were entitled to aid from the Committee.

The first concrete step in effecting international regulation of air navigation was taken by the Aeronautical Commission of the Peace Conference in 1919 when it drew up the International Air Convention of October 13, 1919, instituting the International Commission for Air Navigation (which came into being in July, 1922) in order to provide rules for air traffic. Later modifications in the text of the Convention were authorized in June, 1929.

The International Sugar Agreement of 1937 established the International Sugar Council to deal with problems concerning sugar surpluses and sugar distribution. The agreement, entered into for a period of four years by the twenty-two principal sugar importing and exporting states, was renewed by protocols in 1942, 1944, and 1945. According to the last two protocols, the original agreement was to be revised “as soon as the time appears opportune” and although a proposal for redrafting the agreement was made in January, 1946, no action had been taken on the matter by April, 1947.

In September, 1946, representatives of China, France, the United Kingdom, the United States and the USSR met at Moscow to consider questions of telecommunications. Particular attention was given to proposed reorganization of the International Telecommunications Union in order to provide for an Administrative Council, a permanent Secretariat and a Central Frequency Registration Board. This revision was to be undertaken at the World Telecommunications Meeting, seheduled for July, 1947, at which time the Telecommunications Convention of Madrid (1932) would be amended to provide for the new structure. Matters relating to the improvement of the organization of radio communications and re-allocation of radio frequencies to maritime, aeronautical and long distance land services were considered, while attention was also directed to proposals for a new frequency allocation for various services. Organization of international telephone and telegraph communications and the proposed revision of telegraph and telephone regulations were studied. It was also agreed that a World High Frequency Broadcasting Conference Should be called in the fall of 1947 to assign frequencies to short-wave stations and that a World High Frequency Broadcasting Organization should be established in order to facilitate the interchange of short-wave broadcast programs between countries. The Conference further recommended that an Administrative Radiocommunications Conference be convened on May 15, 1947 and that a World Conference on telephone and telegraph communications be called in 1948.

Established by a Memorandum of Agreement signed by Argentina, Australia, Canada, Great Britain, and the United States in April, 1942, the International Wheat Council was set up as an agency to deal with the allocation of wheat surpluses. During the war it has served as a central organ to administer and coordinate the work of implementing the commitments of member-states to a pool of wheat for the relief of war-stricken and other necessitous areas. It held two sessions in Washington during 1946.

The Universal Postal Union, which has operated since 1874 through periodic Congresses (every five years) and the International Bureau, has recently continued work interrupted by the war. The Congress of the Union, convening May 6 in Paris, at the call of the French government, was to consider over 500 proposals which had been submitted by member countries, asking for changes in many phases of the international postal provisions of the Buenos Aires Convention (1939), and subsidiary agreements. Matters pending consideration included the question of establishing some relationship between the Union and the United Nations, and the possible creation of an Administrative Council designed to make important decisions, in cooperation with the International Bureau, during intervals between Congresses.

The report of the Scientific and Technical Committee on Scientific and Technical Aspects of the problem of Control, included in its entirety as Part IV of this report, was accepted by Committee 2 as a basis for its future work. The Commission now records its approval of that report and incorporates in its present findings the conclusions summarized therein in Chapter 6, as follows: “The substances uranium and thorium play a unique role in the domain of atomic energy, since as far as we know these are the only raw materials from which the nuclear fuel required for the development of atomic energy can be obtained. There is an intimate relation between the activities required for peaceful purposes and those leading to the production of atomic weapons; most of the stages which are needed for the former are also needed for the latter. The character of the different stages of the activities has been discussed in order to explore at each stage the elements of danger and to some extent the problem of safeguards against these dangers. “With respect to mining operations, which are of special significance as the first step in these activities, it appears hopeful that safeguards are not too difficult. Particular attention should be paid to the installations in which concentrated nuclear fuel is produced since the product lends itself immediately to the production of bombs. Unless appropriate safeguards are taken at each of these stages, it will be difficult to ensure that no diversion of material or installations will take place.

MR. GROMYKO (USSR) (Second interpretation; original in Russian): Mr. President, I would recall that in our last meeting devoted to this question I said that I should like to raise some important questions of substance in relation to the Report of the Atomic Energy Commission.

The Security Council, having accepted the resolution of the General Assembly of 14 December 1946 and recognizing that the general regulation and reduction of irmaments and armed forces constitute a most important measure for strengthening international peace and security, and that the implementationof the resolution of the General Assembly on this subject is one of the most urgent and important tasks before the Security Council,

RESOLVES:

1. to work out the practical measures for giving effect to the resolutions of the General Assembly on 14 December 1946 concerning, on the one hand, the general regulation and reduction of armaments and armed forces, and the establishment of international control to bring about the reduction of armaments and armed forces and, on the other hand, information concerning the armed forces of the United Nations;

2. to consider as soon as possible the report submitted by the Atomic Energy Commission and to take suitable decisions in order to facilitate its work;

THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY THEREFORE DETERMINES, in pursuance of Article 93 paragraph 2 of the Charter, and upon the recommendation of the Security Council, the conditions on which Switzerland may become a party to the Statute of the International Court of Justice, as follows:

Switzerland will become a party to the Statute of the Court on the date of the deposit with the Secretary-General of the United Nations of an instrument, signed on behalf of the Government of Switzerland and ratified as may be required by Swiss constitutional law, containing:

(a) Acceptance of the provisions of the Statute of the Court;

(b) Acceptance of all the obligations of a Member of the United Nationsunder Article 94 of the Charter;

The area of the Free Territory of Trieste shall be the territory within the frontiers described in Articles 4 and 22 of the present Treaty as delimited in accordance with Article 5 of the Treaty.

The Governments of Australia, the French Republic, the Kingdom of the Netherlands, New Zealand, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and the United States of America, (hereinafter referred to as “the participating Governments”),