November 7, 1946
Cable No. 198, Molotov to Druzhkov [Stalin]
This document was made possible with support from Carnegie Corporation of New York (CCNY)
[handwritten: copy]
BY CIPHER
SOCHI TO DRUZHKOV [Stalin]
Spets. Nº 198
PRIORITY
In a few days our proposal (four points) about arms reduction will be discussed in the political committee. As is known, the American representative in the Assembly and the American press, referring to the discussion of our proposals, are bombarding them from one side, but more specifically nothing is said in the Soviet proposal about establishing international control of arms reduction. On the question about the atomic bomb the American press is also bombarding our plan from the point of view that there is no proposal about international control in it, which the Americans see as the main advantage of our draft.
In view of this we propose submitting the following additional point (a fifth) during the discussion of our proposals about arms reduction.
“5. Acting on the basis of a special statute institute permanent international control in the system of the Security Council, which bears the main responsibility for international peace and security, in which the creation of special inspection bodies is provided in order to ensure measures are carried out to reduce armaments and to prohibit the use of atomic energy for military purposes”.
Of course, if this point is adopted then we will have to submit more specific proposals about this question to the Security Council.
We accept that at one time permanent international control commissions and inspectorates in them were also provided in our drafts on general disarmament and arms reduction.
We direct attention to the fact that in our five points nothing is said about whether special intergovernmental conventions will be needed to reduce armaments or the reduction of arms will be done without conventions, through Security Council resolutions. This last question requires additional study.
Please approve or give other instructions. [handwritten at the end: N 610/sh]
MOLOTOV
7 November 1946 [handwritten: a copy was given to the 3rd unit
New York 1435 8 November 1946]
2-ash
A cable discussing the Soviet proposal for arms reduction and the American reaction to the proposal. Molotov proposes adding a fifth point to their original proposal: the creation, via the Security Council, of an institute for international control.
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