It was proposed by Mr. Faris al-Khouri (Syria) that the entire matter be left to the representatives of the sponsoring governments to decide in behalf of the Conference.

Mr. Castro (El Salvador) pointed out that the motions of Mr. Padilla and of Mr. Molotov were mutually exclusive but that it might be possible to combine the motions of Mr. Eden and Mr. Molotov. If this were done, it would be necessary to reject Mr. Padilla's motion for a single Chairman.

Mr. Padilla withdrew his motion.

Mr. Molotov then stated that he felt it proper to take into account the comments made by Mr. Eden and Mr. Spaak and supported by other delegations. He renewed the suggestion that the question be divided into two parts, of which the first should be decided immediately and the second (namely the chairmanship of the Executive and Steering Committees) postponed. Mr. Molotov said that the question of the presidency of the plenary sessions of the Conference was most urgent and he suggested the following modified resolution:

In the observance of the principle of equality between the four sponsoring states who are bearing and have borne the main burden of the struggle for the defeat of the enemy of all the United Nations, the Steering Committee suggests that four Chairmen be selected for the plenary sessions of the Conference. The temporary Chairman said that it would be unfortunate to divide this issue and that the whole question should be decided now. He then called for a vote on the question which he summarized as follows:

1. that there should be four Presidents of the Conference;

2. that the four Presidents should preside at the plenary sessions in alphabetical rotation;

3. that the representatives of the four sponsoring governments should meet together from time to time and that at these meetings Mr. Stettinius should preside;

4. that the representative of the United States should be the Chairman of the Steering Committee and of the Executive Committee and that the chairmen of the other delegations should give full powers to Mr. Stettinius for seeing that the work of the Conference was carried out.

M. Bidault (France) suggested that a vote at this time should be avoided in the hope that the Conference could start with real unanimity on the question of the chairmanship and that some other method should be sought for finding a solution. In the meanwhile the present temporary President of the Conference should continue to preside. Mr. Masaryk (Czechoslovakia), however, indicated that he would favor a decision at this time on the chairmanship of the plenary sessions and supported the motion of Mr. Molotov. Mr. Belt (Cuba) suggested that if four Presidents of the Conference were to be chosen that they should be chosen by the Assembly.

The temporary Chairman then put the motion to a vote and asked the Secretary-General once more to summarize Mr. Eden's proposal. Mr. Hiss restated the motion as follows:

There are to be four Presidents to preside at the plenary sessions. These four Presidents may meet together from time to time, Mr. Stettinius to preside at such meetings. Mr. Stettinius is to preside also at meetings of the Steering Committee and of the Executive Committee. Mr. Stettinius is to have the full authority of the Conference for the conduct of affairs.

Mr. Molotov said that he was fully in agreement that Mr. Stettinius should preside over meetings of the four foreign ministers as well as over meetings of the Steering and Executive Committees, but that he felt that the latter question was a matter to be decided by the Committees themselves and not by the Conference.

Mr. Stettinius then put Mr. Eden's motion to a vote of the Committee and declared that it had been approved.

Mr. Molotov then said that he could vote in favor of the proposal for four Presidents of the Conference, and that he had no objection to having Mr. Stettinius act as Chairman of the Executive and Steering Committees. Since, however, the question of how to arrange for Mr. Stettinius to serve in this way was not a question for the Conference itself to decide, he could not cast his vote in favor of Mr. Eden's motion in its present form.

Mr. Molotov, therefore, asked that his own motion be put to a vote, but the temporary Chairman ruled that since it constituted a portion of a motion which had already been approved it could not be separately submitted to the Committee. The temporary Chairman informed the Committee that he was not a free agent, but was under instructions in the matter of having a single Chairman to preside over meetings of the foreign ministers of the four sponsoring gov

ernments.

The temporary Chairman at this point asked for a brief suspension of the Committee session. The Committee reconvened at 2:10 p.m. and Mr. Eden said that he was sure all members felt that this question of the Conference presidency should be decided unanimously if a way could be found. He said that it was apparent that agreement could not be reached at this moment, but he was also convinced that it would be possible to reach agreement if a little more time were provided. He therefore moved that the entire question be postponed for later discussion in the Steering Committee and that in the meanwhile the heads of the delegations should ask Mr. Stettinius to preside over the plenary session scheduled for that afternoon, without constituting a precedent. He also moved that after taking this action the Committee should adjourn. This motion was seconded by Mr. Soong (China). Mr. Molotov said that it would be better if the question of the presidency of the plenary session could be settled then and the other questions deferred.

The temporary Chairman said he could not agree with Mr. Molotov at this time and that the motion of Mr. Eden deferred the entire question. He asked for a vote by show of hands and the motion was approved. The temporary Chairman then announced that the plenary session scheduled for 3:30 p.m., April 26, would be held as scheduled but that the plenary session scheduled for the morning of April 27 would be canceled and that the Steering Committee would meet again at 10:30 a.m., April 27, at the same place.

Summary Report of Meeting of the Heads of Delegations To Organize the Conference, April 27

Doc. 30, April 27

I. Business of the Conference

The temporary Chairman called on Mr. Eden (United Kingdom) to open the discussion, but Mr. Molotov (Soviet Union) asked to be

allowed to raise a question regarding the agenda for the meeting. The temporary Chairman announced that the meeting was to consider the remainder of the agenda from the previous meeting.

Mr. Gromyko (Soviet Union) announced that the representatives of the World Trade Union Conference had asked to have this organization represented at the Conference by advisers or observers, and said that the Soviet Delegation requested that the question of associating the World Trade Union Conference with the work of the Conference in this way be placed on the agenda for this meeting. The temporary Chairman stated that the sponsors had agreed to place this matter before the meeting at the proper time and that this would be done.

II. The Presidency of the Conference

Mr. Eden (United Kingdom) said that having read the proceedings of the previous meeting, the only advice which he could give to the committee would be that it should be guided by the resolutions read by the temporary Secretary-General2 concerning the presidency of the Conference.

Mr. Molotov stated that he accepted Mr. Eden's suggestion subject to insignificant changes. He suggested that the first three points be accepted unchanged. These three points were that:

1. There should be four Presidents of the Conference;

2. These four Presidents should preside in rotation at plenary sessions in alphabetical order;

3. The representatives of the sponsoring governments should meet from time to time, and that at these meetings Mr. Stettinius should preside.

Regarding point 4 of Mr. Eden's proposals, Mr. Molotov said that the Chairmen of the Steering and Executive Committees should be the four Presidents of the Conference, who agree among themselves that the Representative of the United States, Mr. Stettinius, should preside at the Steering and Executive Committees. The Conference should give full power to Mr. Stettinius for conducting the practical business of the Conference. Mr. Molotov asked acceptance of this motion.

At the request of the temporary Chairman the temporary SecretaryGeneral read the resolution which had been approved the day before, as follows:

That there be four Presidents who will preside in rotation at the plenary sessions. These four may meet from time to time, with Mr. Stettinius presiding over these meetings and Mr. Stettinius to be Chairman of the Executive and Steering Committees, the three others delegating full powers to Mr. Stettinius for conducting the business of the Conference.

Dr. Belt (Cuba) asked that Mr. Eden's motion be put to a vote. Mr. Fraser (New Zealand) appealed to Mr. Molotov not to press his amendment on the form of the resolution, the essential provisions of which he had already accepted.

General Romulo (Philippine Commonwealth) supported the appeal of Mr. Fraser.

Mr. Soong (China) urged that in view of the great events which

The temporary Secretary-General, Mr. Alger Hiss, was nominated Secretary-General by the Heads of Delegations at their meeting on Apr. 26 and was confirmed by the plenary session of the Conference on Apr. 27.

made it desirable for delegates to return to their countries as soon as possible the matter be decided quickly. He referred to the earnest discussion of this question among the sponsoring governments which had taken place before the Conference met.

Mr. Molotov referred again to the question of diplomatic precedent but indicated that no previous conference had to deal with such great problems. The Soviet Delegation was no less interested than other delegations in the efficiency of the Conference. The Soviet motion, he said, was designed to put the motion of Mr. Eden in more logical form.

Withdrawal of Soviet Amendment (to Mr. Eden's Motion)

In order to manifest the unity of the sponsoring governments, Mr. Molotov then said that he would drop his proposal and support the motion made by Mr. Eden.

The temporary Chairman, Mr. Stettinius, expressed his gratification over the action of Mr. Molotov, and said that it was the single purpose of the United States Delegation to proceed with the greatest work ever entrusted to any group of men in order that the Conference might succeed and that the delegates might return to their respective governments with the Charter of an Organization capable of preventing war in the world.

Mr. Stettinius declared approved, without further discussion, Mr. Eden's motion with regard to the presidency of the Conference, as read by the temporary Secretary-General.

III. Election of Executive Committee of the Conference

The temporary Secretary-General said that the four sponsoring governments recommended that the Executive Committee of the Conference be composed of the chairmen of the delegations from the following countries: Australia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, China, Czechoslovakia, France, Iran, Mexico, Netherlands, Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, United Kingdom, United States of America, and Yugoslavia.

Decision. Mr. Fraser moved that the recommendation of the four sponsoring governments be accepted. The motion was seconded by Mr. Forde (Australia) and was carried by a show of hands.

V. Rules of Procedure

The temporary Secretary-General then passed to point V, Languages, and asked for a clarification regarding the use of languages at the plenary sessions. It had been agreed yesterday that addresses in English or French need not be interpreted. The temporary Secretary-General suggested that an address delivered in a third language should be interpreted into either English or French according to the preference of the speaker.

Mr. Bidault (France) stated that he had no objection to the suggestion except that interpretation into both languages should be provided if a speaker so requested.

The temporary Secretary-General stated that the Secretariat would be so guided.

Mr. Gromyko referred to the decision at the previous meeting that English, French, Russian, Chinese, and Spanish should be the official languages, and asked that the following categories of documents be published in these languages:

1. All proposals presented to the Conference or its subordinate bodies;

2. All decisions of plenary sessions, commissions, or committees; 3. Summaries or records of meetings of committees or subcommittees.

The temporary Secretary-General stated that the Secretariat would follow these suggestions.

IX. Invitation to the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic and the White Russian Soviet Socialist Republic To Become Original Members of the International Organization

Mr. Molotov said that he had been instructed by the Governments of the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic and of the White Russian Soviet Socialist Republic to make a statement in their behalf.

To facilitate matters, he said, the Soviet Delegation had circulated the text of the statements of the Governments of the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic and of the White Russian Soviet Socialist Republic, together with other information bearing on this matter. At the Crimea Conference a decision had been adopted with regard to the admission of the two Republics as original members of the proposed Organization. Mr. Molotov read the text of this decision as follows:

When the conference on world organization is held, the delegates of the United Kingdom and the United States of America will support a proposal to admit to original membership two Soviet Socialist Republics, i.e. the Ukraine and White Russia.

Mr. Molotov proposed that the delegates should support the decision of the Crimea Conference and associate themselves with it. He wished to remind the delegates of the constitutional aspects of this subject. The Soviet Republics are sovereign states. The Constitution of the Soviet Union, as well as the constitutions of the individual Soviet Republics, insure to them the right even to leave the Soviet Union whenever they desire to do so. Decisions adopted by the Supreme Soviets of the Ukrainian and White Russian Republics, as well as by the Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union, granted to the Republics the right to make treaties, to participate in international acts, to take part in international conferences, and to establish diplomatic relations with foreign countries.

Of no less importance, Mr. Molotov continued, was the part which the two Republics had played in the struggle against the common enemy. In this respect, they were unique among the sixteen Republics, for at least one million of the citizens of each of the two Republics were enrolled in the ranks of the Red Army. Their participation in other ways in the war had been the maximum possible. Germany had begun its attack on the Soviet Union by invading the Ukrainian and White Russian Republics and it was they who had borne the major burden of invasion.

Mr. Molotov concluded by restating his proposal that the Committee