SOVIET VETO ON NINE NATIONS’ ENTRY TO U.N.O.

Grey River Argus, 7 November 1949, Page 5

SOVIET VETO ON NINE NATIONS’ ENTRY TO U.N.O.

NEW YORK;, Nov. 4 The United States, Great Britain, France and China have expressed willingness to join with the Soviet Union in an agreement to voluntarily suspend the veto power on the question of United Nations membership. The Soviet Union opposes this move, insisting on retention of the unrestricted veto right. What the fifty-nine United Nations Assembly can do' to resolve the impasse in the Security Council, on the United Nations membership issue is being discussed now by a special committee of the U.N.O. Assembly. Australia, supported by the United States and other delegations, has submitted a series of resolution? calling upon the Security Council to reconsider the applications of the nine States vetoed by the Soviet Union. The nine applicants, all of whom have won majority support in the Council, are Austria, Ceylon, Finland, Ireland, Italy, Jordan, Republic of Korea, Nepal, and Portugal. Five other applicants have failed to gain the necessary majority approval in the Council. 'These, Sovietsupported States are Albania, Mongolian People’s Republic, Bulgaria, Hungary, and Rumania. The problem centres about the Soviet Union’s repeated use of the veto in the Security Council to block admission of the applicants approved by the majority. The opinion of some members is that the final decision on the admission of new members rests legally with the Assembly, where the veto does not apply. An Argentine resolution would ask the International Court for an advisory ruling on this matter. The Soviet wants the Assembly to ask the Council to reconsider all of the above States esVept the Republic of Korea. Similar Soviet proposals have been rejected in the bast on the grounds that they would involve tacit acceptance of a “deal” skirting the United Nations Charter sepcifications as to qualifications expected from prospective members,. The United States delegate, Mr J. S. Cooper, reiterated United States support of the nine States vetoed by the Soviet Union. As for the five Soviet-supported applicants, Mr Cooper stated: “The Soviet Union could perform the best service to these applicants by persuading them to conduct themselves as to meet the qualifications for admission.”