793.94 Commission/633: Telegram
The Consul at Geneva (Gilbert) to the Secretary of State
[Received 6:25 p.m.]
361. 1. In private meeting of Assembly Bureau this morning the question of the “four-power resolution” (Consulate’s 354, December 8, 10 a.m.) and the “two-power resolution” (Consulate’s 355, December 8, 11 a.m.) was discussed. Hymans had found the Japanese less intransigeant regarding the four-power resolution in conversations last night and Matsuoka did not insist upon a vote as indicated in Consulate’s 358, December 8, 4 p.m. Hymans thereupon proposed that he should explain by declaration to the Assembly that all documents submitted by the Council, the text of the Assembly debates and any “proposals” submitted would be transmitted to the Committee of Nineteen and the two-power resolution amended accordingly. He would state at the same time that none of the proposals or suggestions advanced during the Assembly debates would in any way prejudice the judgment of the Committee.
The authors of the four-power resolution agreed to this provided that there would be no doubt that the four-power resolution was being [Page 410] transmitted to the Committee of Nineteen. This was agreed to and covered by the amendment of the two-power resolution as noted below.
2. Information respecting developments in the private meeting was made available by Sweetser in line with previous practice with which the Department is familiar. This arrangement will probably continue with respect to future private meetings on this subject.
3. The arrangement as given in 1 was made explicit in the Assembly session this afternoon when the two-power resolution was unanimously adopted with the following amendment.
Point (1) of Consulate’s 355, December 8, 11 a.m., now reads:
“(1) To study the report of the Commission of Inquiry, the observations of the parties and the opinions and suggestions expressed in the Assembly in whatever form they were submitted.”
This was followed by a presidential declaration in the sense explained above.