VETO LIMITATION

Gisborne Herald, Volume LXXV, Issue 22585, 13 March 1948, Page 5

VETO LIMITATION

BIG POWER RIGHTS AMERICAN PROPOSAL “LITTLE ASSEMBLY’new YORK, March 11. The United States today proposed drastic restrictions on the Big Power veto in the United Nations. The American spokesman said the proposal would exclude all issues in which Russia had used the veto 22 times. The proposal was laid before “the Little Assembly” today as the first move toward carrying out the declaration made by Mr. George Marshall before the General Assembly last September when he said the United States was willing to limit the veto on questions of prime importance if the other Powers would agree. The proposal listed 31 categories of questions which would be excluded from the veto and would limit the veto almost exclusively to enforcement of measures, economic or military.

Among the issues proposed to be placed outside the veto were the admission of new members.

The American spokeman said the United States hoped the changes could be brought about without changing the Charter but. he added, “we are not closing the door to possible amendments to the Charter.” The suokesman contended that there was no evidence that Russia would agree to any modification of the voting procedure, but said the issue was so important that it was worth trying anyway.

Russia is boycotting the “Little Assembly.”