In speaking of inter-American agreements, I wish to express, in the name of my country, the very sincere joy we feel as we see the Argentine Republic join in the tasks of the United Nations at this Conference where its contribution will be, I am sure, worthy of its loftiest and most noble traditions. I wish moreover to endorse the statements made here yesterday in honor of this great people; and I greet its arrival in our midst, not only because I represent an American nation but also because the political, economic, and cultural importance of the Argentine made that country's case important to the whole world and not merely, as might be thought, to our continent. Now indeed the entire community of American nations is bound together and ready, as ever, to work toward international justice and concord; and this we will do not as a blind and previously indoctrinated league but as a free association of sovereign states, each one of whom has jealously retained its freedom of opinion and of decision. One of the most delicate problems submitted to us here is that of the respective powers of the Security Council and of the General Assembly. This problem is not new and it arose in the past when the Covenant of the League of Nations was being drawn up. The procedure then adopted is today very much criticized, as indeed is all that Geneva achieved. But in all sincerity I would not hesitate to state that the decisive causes for the failure of the League of Nations were not due to weaknesses inherent in its Covenant. The formula used in the Dumbarton Oaks Proposals is not the same as that of the Geneva Covenant and has the advantage of being new. It seems in any case to fit the exceptional circumstances in which this International Organization is being founded, as it is presented to us. But I will not conceal the fact that my Government hopes, as indeed do many other governments, that the formula adopted here will be able to follow a timely evolution toward procedures that will be more democratic and represent better the community of nations.

One of the elements of international organization considered by everyone as essential to the progress of relations between states, is undoubtedly the International Court of Justice. And I believe that one of the chief aims of our deliberations must be to grant it the most complete authority and the greatest effectiveness in the administration of its activities.

If the lessons of the past and the horrible vision of the present are to be of any value in the eyes of man, he must obviously not limit his efforts to preventing or solving conflicts once they have already arisen. It will therefore be necessary that the new Organization be able to enforce measures of active cooperation in order to find, for the economic and social problems posited before the world, solutions which will be compatible with a satisfactory order in international relations. To state it more exactly, it will be necessary to establish a peace which I would even call militant, because it would abandon its purely defensive position and adopt a positive action in attacking the true causes of friction between states in the various fields of economic and social activity. There exist instruments for this kind of action, such as the magnificent International Labor Organization, whose achievements between the two wars have fully justified all hopes founded on it and render its continued existence absolutely necessary. Other organs are in the process of creation and their principles are being discussed by the governments interested. Still others are being planned and will soon take shape. This inevitable multiplicity of functions

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in itself suggests the need for coordination, and it seems to me that the Dumbarton Oaks plan of an Economic and Social Council, dependent on the General Assembly, truly deserves the approval that all governments have expressed concerning it.

In this field of economics and also in the field of demography, the world will have to face two fundamental problems: that of an equitable distribution of raw materials necessary to industry, and that of an appropriate planning of migratory movements, not merely to achieve a better geographical balance of populations, but also in order that a great number of countries may be able to develop to the maximum their economic resources, and in order that the standard of living of all nations may be raised, thus insuring social justice and stability, which alone can maintain peace among nations. That is why it seems desirable, even necessary, that international organizations exist whose purpose would be to contribute toward the solution of problems of this sort, while at the same time respecting, of course, the sovereign rights and the freedom of the states involved in such delicate matters. As a mere reminder and to stress its importance in the eyes of my Government, I shall now refer to the problem of transportation which, as you know, has undergone in recent times intense development and will certainly demand some coordinating action on an international scale.

Before closing, I wish to mention here an idea which, I am sure, is dear to all of you and to which I myself have been devoted all my life; I mean intellectual cooperation. I believe sincerely that the organization of peace will never rest on sound foundations if there exists no close mutual understanding between the minds and hearts of men. The peoples of the world must know each other morally and spiritually before they can manage to dispel the distrust and ignorance which keep them apart. We must build up a kind of intellectual network, above the network of the physical communications system which exists between nations, or parallel to it. The present formula of intellectual cooperation must therefore be revised and expressed in terms both more exact and more extensive, in order to grant more importance to the educational aspects of its action. In the Americas we have with some success tried methods which might be adapted to a world plan. This war has, moreover, left in its path not only terrible devastation in all physical fields but also vast spiritual anarchy. It will be absolutely necessary to undertake the intellectual and moral reconstruction of the world as well as its material reconstruction, and with equal energy.

Gentlemen, this Conference opens under the auspices of certain and close victory, and at a time of mourning for the whole world. It is still difficult for us to admit the terrible truth that President Roosevelt is no more; fallen in the heat of battle, as the war's most glorious hero, he remains among us, through his spirit and his work, the very first artisan of the peace. Posterity will confirm the opinion of his contemporaries and will revere in him one of the greatest figures of all times; the world will be grateful to him because, in the midst of this terrible catastrophe of war and throughout its duration, he toiled for the establishment of the reign of justice. Under the inspiration of his example, we can be sure that no problem, however acute, can ever divide the United Nations, and that the close coalition of victory, far from breaking asunder, will enlarge its scope and grow stronger as the years go by. That is the most fervent hope which I

have come here to express on behalf of the Government and of the people of Venezuela.

Mr. SOONG: This concludes the speeches which have been scheduled for this evening.

Tomorrow the Eighth Plenary Session of the Conference will be held at 3:30 p.m. in this hall. At that session this series of statements by the chiefs of delegations will be concluded. The final group of speakers to be heard tomorrow are the Chairmen of the Delegations of Mexico, Nicaragua, Norway, Panama, Peru, Syria, and Yugoslavia.

The Seventh Plenary Session of the Conference is hereby adjourned.

Verbatim Minutes of the Eighth Plenary Session,

Doc. 65, May 3

May 2

Mr. MOLOTOV (speaking in Russian; English version as delivered by interpreter follows): There is one item of business to be taken up today. The Secretary-General will make a report of the result of the work carried out in the meeting of the officers of the commissions today. Mr. Hiss will read his statement.

Mr. Hiss: Mr. President, Members of the Delegations, Ladies and Gentlemen, at an informal meeting this morning of the officers of the four commissions, I was instructed to read this afternoon the following statement approved at that informal meeting:

At the conclusion of this present session the Conference will have heard in eight plenary sessions the statements of the chairmen of the delegations who have signified a desire to speak. It is now possible for the Conference to carry on its work through its four commissions and twelve technical committees.

The officers of the four commissions met informally this morning to discuss the procedures required for beginning the second phase of our work. It is their recommendation that the officers of each commission meet tomorrow with the officers of the committees within that commission to plan the work of the committees, in order that the committees may proceed to their important tasks as soon as possible.

In view of the urgency of proceeding with the agenda of the Conference, it is recommended that the commissions meet subsequently to receive the reports of their technical committees. In accordance with that recommendation there have been tentatively scheduled, subject to approval by the Conference in plenary session now, the following informal organizing meetings for tomorrow:

Officers of Commission I and officers of its committees, 10:30 tomorrow morning in room 303 of the Veterans Building;

Officers of Commission II and officers of its committees, also at 10:30 tomorrow morning in room 213 of the Veterans Building;

Officers of Commission III and officers of its committees, at 3:30 tomorrow afternoon in room 303 of the Veterans Building; and

Officers of Commission IV and officers of its committees, at 3:30 tomorrow afternoon in room 213 of the Veterans Building.

I understand that any members of the various commissions and committees, other than the officers, who may desire to attend those informal meetings as auditors, will be welcome.

Mr. MOLOTOV (speaking in Russian; English version as delivered by interpreter follows): Does any delegation wish to comment on the Secretary-General's statement?

In as much as there is no one wishing to make comments on the Secretary-General's statement, permit me to regard this report as approved.

At this session, we shall conclude the series of statements made by the chairmen of delegations who have expressed their desire to address the Conference.

The Chair recognizes as the first speaker the Secretary of Foreign Relations and Chairman of the Delegation of Mexico, Mr. Padilla. Mr. PADILLA (speaking in Spanish; English version as delivered by interpreter follows): Mr. Chairman, Fellow Delegates, Ladies and Gentlemen, I wish my first words to convey my profound devotion and gratitude to the heroes and martyrs of war, to the armed forces of the United Nations among whose flags my country has made its fervent contribution.

Twenty-five years ago men of good-will endeavored to do away forever with the savage recourse to armed strife. Everyone hailed with emotion the League of Nations; but the intelligence and the will of the world were as yet unprepared.

Shortly thereafter perverse forces threatening peace began to rise on all sides-economic warfare, isolationism, the sad spectacle of a peace organization powerless against the most flagrant violations of the principles on which it was founded. Manchuria, Abyssinia, Albania, offered as rewards for international crime in the face of a will paralyzed by disagreement among the great democracies of the world. A dream of peace shattered among the ruins of Spain, Czechoslovakia, Poland, Norway, Belgium, Holland, France. Then the long night of suffering and destruction, the memory of which will always fill our hearts with horror.

Out of this desolate picture we representatives of the United Nations have brought to this assembly the renewed determination to guarantee to posterity that such a hell on earth shall be no more.

But now we come armed with experience of the failure of an ideal and with a system of principles that constitute the charter of victory. The Organization we are creating will require weapons-planes, tanks, warships. Yet if we really want permanent security and peace, there is a spiritual force we must create as effective as those material forces the reciprocal respect and confidence of all nations, large and small.

International life should be a factory of confidence, not arrogance. Good faith and the spirit of unity among the great powers are the cornerstones of peace.

It is the duty of the small nations to make every possible contribution toward the maintenance of that essential solidarity among the United States, the Soviet Union, Great Britain, France, and China.

Small nations do not threaten peace. A moral force, invisible but formidable, is on the side of the small nations. They live in the protective shadow of their own sacrifices and other contributions to the cause of right.

This war began with the treacherous Axis aggression against peoples guilty only of innocence and weakness. The world's democracies arose against such brutality and in defense of their own destinies they have reaffirmed as one of the principles for which they fight the sovereignty of those heroic downtrodden nations.

We are frequently reminded to be realistic but what greater and more undeniable reality than the fact that small nations do exist free from the lust for power and conquest. They represent the highest aspirations toward justice. They are builders of the fortress of law. That is why we, the small nations, are here—not by reason of a mili

tary strength which we do not possess nor by virtue of a contribution that could be powerful in guaranteeing peace, but because of our honest yearning for cordial friendship and our sincere love for peace. We want security, not only for ourselves-for us who possess no elements to threaten it--but security for the great powers who can more readily be tempted by the sinister advice of ambition and force.

The international organism for security and peace must be built on democratic principles. Democracy safeguards the brotherhood of all men. Should the great powers wish to be alone in authority they would also remain alone in their struggle for supremacy. And, then, what they would establish would only be a return to permanent insecurity.

Social justice, oppression, poverty, wherever they exist, threaten the security of the world. The interdependence of all nations is now an inexorable law. Force must be an exclusive instrument of the community of nations. All these standards and ideals that have led the armed forces of the United Nations to victory have been consecrated in immortal documents and in the agreements of the three great leaders of this war-Churchill, Stalin, and that towering figure, the most inspired statesman of our times, Franklin Delano Roosevelt.

We have come here to comply with a will left us by the fallen generation for the benefit of our future generations.

In essence it is a tribute to the war heroes and martyrs whose executors we are. This means that the peace we want is far more than a mere question of force. It is above all the organization of force, but on the basis of justice, justice for all men and for all peoples; justice for the strong and justice for those who need it most, for the masses, painfully climbing toward liberation and human dignity.

We are met to accomplish the most cherished of the principles for which they gave their lives to free the world from brute force, that it may rest on law. Peace has different meanings for different nations. It does not mean the same thing to the oppressed as it does to the prosperous. But if we listen closely to the hearts of men we shall hear, in the midst of so many contradictions, so many lacerating inequalities, a voice understood by all peoples expressing sentiments of unity and brotherhood. That voice speaks our determination to defend the equal rights of all nations to fight for the rights and dignity of man, and to labor without rest, without dismay toward the abolition of poverty and the establishment of social justice and freedom.

Let us recognize, with humility in our hearts, that we in this assembly are but an instrument of ever-growing forces striving for the redemption of mankind. Man himself, struggling, dreaming, suffering, and dying, plays the leading role in this great drama. In order to do our duty in this Conference we need only to heed his cries for justice, liberty, and peace, reaching us from all corners of the earth. (Because of an unavoidable delay in the arrival of the Chairman of the Delegation of Nicaragua, the President next recognized the Chairman of the Delegation of Norway.)

Mr. MOLOTOV (speaking in Russian; English version as delivered by interpreter follows): The Chair now recognizes the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Chairman of the Delegation of Norway, Mr. Lie. Mr. LIE: Mr. Chairman, Fellow Delegates, Ladies and Gentlemen, many words have already been spoken from this rostrum to honor the memory of the late President Roosevelt. The people of Norway