14. The Secretary of State for External Affairs referred to the draft statement for the guidance of the Permanent Delegate to the United Nations and Representative on the Security Council, copies of which had been circulated to Ministers since the meeting of January 29th.

(External Affairs statement, Jan. 27 - Cabinet Document 597).⁸

15. The Prime Minister expressed agreement with the general tenor of the draft statement. With reference, however, to paragraph 21, it was essential that, in issues of importance involving commitments on the part of the government, Canadian representatives at the United Nations should seek specific instructions from the Cabinet; if time would not permit obtaining such instructions before a vote were taken, a Canadian representative should abstain. The draft instructions should be specific on this point.

16. Mr. St. Laurent pointed out that member countries of the United Nations were committed financially only with respect to matters contained in the budget adopted by the General Assembly.

With respect to military commitments, the obligation to provide forces could proceed only from agreement between the government and the Security Council. As yet no such agreements had been entered into, the Military Staff Committee having failed to submit recommendations on this subject.

17. The Minister of Agriculture felt that the draft instructions did not take sufficient account of the danger of having Canadian representatives at international meetings fall too much within the orbit of U.S. policy.

18. The Minister of National Defence observed that the issue raised by Mr. Gardiner was of particular importance in relation to defence. The policy on which we were proceeding in joint defence arrangements with the United States had been decided by the Cabinet. If there were to be any change in this policy it would result only from a further Cabinet decision.

19. The Cabinet, after considerable further discussion, agreed to defer until a later meeting decision upon the instructions to Canadian representatives pending amendment of the draft submitted along the lines indicated by The Prime Minister and with reference to any suggestions which might be made by Ministers in the interim.

⁸Un projet antérieur du document 87.
An eartier draft of Document 87.