U.S. Move To Limit Veto Power Sn U.N.

Northern Advocate, 12 March 1948, Page 5

U.S. Move To Limit Veto Power Sn U.N.

NEW YORK, Thu. (10 a.m.). —The United States today proposed drastic restrictions on big-power veto in the United Nations.

The American spokesman said the proposal would exclude all the 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 the Secretary of State (Mr Marshall) before the General Assembly last September.

He then said that the United States was willing to limit the veto to ques-

tions 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 measures, economic or military. Among the issues proposed to be placed outside the veto was the admission of new members. The American spokesman said the United States hoped the changes could be brought ,about without changing the Charter, but added: “We are not closing the door to possible amendments to the Charter.” There was no evidence that Russia would agree to any modification of the voting procedure, he said, but the issue was so important that it was worth trying any way. Russia is boycotting the Little Assembly.