500.A15A4 Steering Committee/22: Telegram
The Acting Chairman of the American Delegation (Gibson) to the Secretary of State
[Received June 14—6:28 p.m.]
247. The Bureau of the Conference met this afternoon for consideration of the reports of the special commissions on qualitative disarmament. In view of the divergence of opinions and the lack of unanimity expressed in them the Bureau decided after considerable discussion to defer their consideration in accordance with Mr. Henderson’s proposal until after the private conversations which were “understood to be on the point of beginning” could reach some measure of accord on political questions. Among the objections to considering any phase of these reports even those upon which unanimity had been reached was a German resolution to be put forward at the first meeting of the General Commission which would entail considerable discussion.
The German proposal if adopted would amount to a decision by the General Commission that all arms prohibited to Germany under the peace treaties are aggressive and should therefore be abolished.
In addition the Bureau decided that the Soviet proposal on private manufacture should take its appropriate place in the existing agenda and that a small committee should be appointed consisting of an American representative, De Brouckere, and Beneš to discuss, in consultation with the interested delegations, the terms of the resolution setting up the effectives commission and to determine whether the terms of reference might not be modified in the light of the observations made during the course of the Commissions’ discussions.