UK response to Great Powers, progress report to SecCo – UNPC 53rd mtg. – Summary record

UNITED NATIONS PALESTINE COMMISSION

SUMMARY RECORD OF THE FIFTY-THIRD MEETING

 Lake Success, New York

Monday, 15 March 1948, at 11.00 a.m.

COMMUNICATION FROM THE UNITED KINGDOM DELEGATION GIVING ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS FROM THE FOUR POWERS

The CHAIRMAN informed the Commission that during the week-end he had received a communication from the United Kingdom delegation with a memorandum attached to it in which were contained the answers that the United Kingdom delegation had given to the questions submitted to them by the representatives of the Four Great Powers discussing the Palestine Question. After having read the contents of the memorandum to the Commission and informing them that the document would be circulated, the Chairman suggested that as an act of courtesy, the answers given by the Commission to the questions submitted to them by the representatives of the Four Great Powers should also be transmitted to the United Kingdom delegation. This suggestion was approved by the Commission.

SUPPLEMENTARY MEMORANDUM OF THE JEWISH AGENCY ON ACTS OF ARAB AGGRESSION

As this memorandum had been distributed to members of the Security Council, it was agreed simply to acknowledge receipt of the document.

CABLE FROM MR. AZCARATE

A cable from Mr. Azcarate (Deputy Principal Secretary) was distributed to the members of the Commission and after discussion it was agreed to include a new paragraph referring to the cable in the Second Monthly Report of the Commission to the Security Council. It was therefore decided to insert as paragraph 2 of Section H of the Second Monthly Report the following: “Information concerning present conditions in Palestine, received by the Commission from the Advance Party of the Secretariat in Jerusalem, fully confirms the conclusions set forth in the Commission’s First Special Report on the Problem of Security, and further emphasizes that unless security is restored in Palestine, implementation of the resolution of the General Assembly will not be possible.” Paragraph 2 of Section H of the previous draft became paragraph 3.

ATTITUDE TO BE ADOPTED BY THE COMMISSION IN THE SECURITY COUNCIL

The CHAIRMAN asked and received the Commission’s agreement to his suggestion that in its stand before the Security Council on matters of general principle, the Commission should reiterate its expressed and unequivocal opinion, as put forward in its reports, that it would be unable to implement the Assembly resolution without an adequate non-Palestinian armed force at its disposal. On matters of detail and in answer to specific questions it was agreed by the Commission that the Chairman should ask the Security Council to give him time to discuss these points with the Commission in detail and to be permitted to submit the Commission’s answers in writing. In this regard, further and more detailed discussion of the Commission’s attitude before the Security Council was suggested.

MEMORANDUM FROM THE ADVANCE PARTY

The SECRETARY informed the Commission that a number of memoranda from the members of the Advance Party had been received by diplomatic pouch and then proceeded to give a brief description of the contents of these reports which included: (1) a memorandum by Mr. Azcarate, commenting on the situation in Palestine, (2).a memorandum by Colonel Roscher Lund, concerning travel and accommodation of the Advance Party, (3) a memorandum by Mr. Ghosh on fiscal problems and (4) a memorandum by Mr. Stavropoulos, which dealt with the accommodations available in Wilhelma.

SIGNING OF THE SECOND MONTHLY REPORT TO THE SECURITY COUNCIL

The Second Monthly Report to the Security Council as a whole was approved and signed by the Chairman and Members of the Commission.

The meeting rose at 12.30 p.m.