§ 31. Mr. Emrys Hughesasked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs if he will agree to the request, made by Mr. Trygve Lie and Dr. Evatt, urging the leaders of the four Great Powers to meet to consider further the crisis in Berlin.
§ Mr. MayhewOur reply has just been published. I will circulate a copy of it in the OFFICIAL REPORT.
§ Mr. HughesIn view of the fact that our refusal to agree to the request of these two eminent United Nations' people will be regarded throughout the world as hostile to the United Nations and as a thoroughly unreasonable attitude, will there be an opportunity to debate the question in this House?
§ Mr. MayhewI entirely disagree with all the assumptions in that question. The question of a Debate is one for my right hon. Friend the Leader of the House.
§ Mr. ScollanCould the hon. Gentleman say—
§ Mr. SpeakerMr. Henry Strauss.
§ Mr. Henry StraussCould the Under-Secretary inform the House under which Article of the Charter these two gentlemen purported to act in putting forward this request?
§ Mr. MayhewThey acted in pursuance of a resolution proposed by the Mexican Government and approved by the Plenary Assembly.
§ Mr. ScollanMight I ask—
§ Mr. SpeakerThe hon. Member will kindly wait till he is called before asking a question. Mr. Wilson Harris.
Mr. Wilson HarrisCan the Under-Secretary say whether this step was concerted in any way with the Security Council; and if not, how comes it that the Secretary-General, who is the servant of the Security Council as much as of the General Assembly, is now taking this prominent part in an action which appears to cut clean across the procedure of the Security Council?
§ Mr. MayhewI understand that this was not a measure concerted with the 354 Security Council. On that point I have no doubt that the Secretary-General felt justified in supporting the initiative taken by the President as President of the Assembly.
§ Mr. ScollanIs not the Under-Secretary aware that I have put down a Motion, which should have appeared on the Order Paper yesterday? I hope my hon. Friend will look at that and support it.
§ Mr. WarbeyWill my hon. Friend pay a properly deserved tribute to these two great world statesmen who are properly carrying out their duties in accordance with the Preamble of the United Nations' Charter?
§ Mr. MayhewWe appreciate the spirit in which this initiative was taken. Our attitude to the initiative is set out in the reply which I shall circulate.
§ Mr. HughesIs the Under-Secretary aware that it is time that orthodox diplomatic procedure was cut out—because it is getting the people of the world nowhere?
§ Mr. GallacherThe Tories do not want that.
§ Following is the reply of His Majesty's Government:
§ I have the honour to thank you for your letter of 13th November, 1948, addressed to Sir A. Cadogan, about the Berlin question. It has been given to the Prime Minister and has been carefully studied by His Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom. His Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom appreciate the spirit of helpfulness which impelled you to write this letter and are anxious to make their attitude clear. His Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom have noted the statements in your letter to the effect that the Great Powers should lend their full and active support to the efforts at mediation in the Berlin dispute by the President of the Security Council. I desire to take this opportunity to assure you that His Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom are fully determined to aid the President and the other members of the Security Council in the steps taken by them to find a solution of the Berlin question.
355§ His Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom desire to recall that, in accordance with the Charter, they made every effort to resolve the Berlin question by means of direct negotiation with the Soviet Government in Moscow, and that they were frustrated by the failure of the Soviet Government to send instructions to their Military Governor in Berlin in conformity with the understanding which had been reached between the representatives of the Western Powers and Premier Stalin during the discussion in Moscow. As the result of this failure His Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom, in agreement with the Governments of the United States and France, felt obliged to refer the question to the Security Council, where, in common with eight other members of the Security Council, they accepted a draft resolution. It will be remembered that the representative of the Soviet Union challenged the competence of the United Nations to deal with this question at all and, in the event, voted against the resolution. It is the Soviet veto which stands in the way of further progress in this matter. As was, however, stated publicly at the time, His Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom, together with the Governments of the United States and France, expressed their willingness to be guided by the principles embodied in the draft resolution and pointed out that the Berlin question was still on the agenda of the Security Council.
§ In these circumstances, His Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom feel that the most hopeful method of reaching a speedy and satisfactory solution of this difficult problem would be to leave it, as it stands at present, in the hands of the Security Council. As they have repeatedly made clear, His Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom are fully prepared to agree to a Four-Power meeting to discuss Berlin and other outstanding German questions as soon as the present restrictions on communications, transport and trade between Berlin and the Western Zones of Germany have been removed.
§ I have no doubt that you would wish the President of the Security Council to be fully informed of this exchange of views and I am, accordingly, sending him a copy of this letter.