U.N. Security Council Defers Vote Until Today on U.S. Resolution to Halt Palestine War

The United Nations Security Council this evening deferred a vote on an American resolution calling for the Council to issue order for an indefinite truce in Palestine to go into effect within three days after its adoption. The Council adjourned for the day when Soviet delegate Andrei Gromyko demanded certain important changes in the resolution, although he, too, favored strong measures to halt the Palestine war.

The Council will meet again tomorrow to attempt to iron out the differences between the U.S. and Soviet views. As today’s meeting closed the United States had only obtained six votes for its resolution–one short of a minimum of seven required to pass the measure. This places Gromyko in a favorable position for bargaining for changes in the U.S. resolution. The nations which indicated that they will vote for the resolution are: the U.S., United Kingdom, Belgium, France, Canada and Colombia. In his explanation of the Soviet position Gromyko supported the call for sanctions to enforce obedience to the Council truce order and backed an immediate and unconditional truce. He also placed the blame for the current situation in Palestine on the Arabs.

Gromyko, however, rejected a call to all governments to cooperate with the mediator in enforcing a world-wide ban on Jewish immigration end arms shipments. He rejected the continuation of the mediator in the Palestine truce or his powers to deal with breaches of the cease-fire and the U.S. provision for an indefinite time limit of the truce. The Soviet delegate also took exception to the provision governing Jerusalem and ha called for the withdrawal of troops from the ancient city.

ISRAEL AGREES TO ALL TRUCE CONDITIONS EXCEPT IMMIGRATION CONTROLS

At the opening of the afternoon session, Israeli representative Aubrey Eban announced that he had received instructions from his government to advise the Council it will accept a cease-fire in both Palestine and Jerusalem, but reserves the right to remain master of its own immigration policy. Eban said the concessions his government had made on this score were based on a short term truce and not on the indefinite arrangement envisaged in the American resolution.

Palestine mediator Count Folke Bernadotte intervened in this morning’s debate to stress a number of conditions which he considered necessary to assure the success of the truce. The Council must make it clear that It will not tolerate the use of force in Palestine, he stressed, adding that the action of Council must be “so strong, so firm” that neither party will dare risk ignoring it. He also emphasized that the truce must remain in force until a peaceful settlement of the issue is achieved.

Bernadotte also asked that the conditions of the previous cease-fire be carried over, but that control of men of military age who reach Israel should be modified. It is unfair, he pleaded, to keep these men in detention for months during an indefinite truce period. He objected to a British amendment to the U.S. proposal dating violations of the truce back to the beginning of the expired four-week truce.