01967-242-02007-3

Towards 242 at the UN . . .

By autumn 01967, it was clear that the situation in the Middle East had only grown more precarious since the previous summer's war. Though there was talk for months about the need for a UN Resolution on the matter, it wasn't until the first week of November that the opportunity opened up when Egypt pressed the Security Council for immediate meetings.

Several days into those sessions, a resolution draft composed by India and co-submitted with Mali and Nigeria hung over the negotiations. It was considered by nearly everyone in the Council that the Indian draft's explicit demand for Israel to withdraw to the pre-Six Day War borders would prove unacceptable to the Jewish state and would destabilize further negotiations. The United States was the the first to propose an alternative resolution softening the demand. This draft also died quickly, an event mostly due to Cold War alliances working against a compromise initiated by the Super Power.

The United States draft, which never reached the floor for an official vote but proved influential on the approved draft, reads thusly:

'The Security Council;

Emphasizing the urgency of reducing tensions and bringing about a just and lasting peace in which every state in the area can live in security,
Emphasizing further that all member states in their acceptance of the Charter of the UN have undertaken a commitment to act in accordance with Article 2 of the Charter,

1. Affirms that the fulfillment of the above Charter principles requires the achievement of a state of just and lasting peace in the Middle East embracing withdrawal of armed forces from occupied territories, termination of claims or states of belligerence, and mutual recognition and respect for the right of every state in the area to sovereign existence, territorial integrity, political independence, secure and recognized boundaries, and freedom from the threat or use of force:

2. Affirms further the necessity
A. For guaranteeing freedom of navigation through international waterways in the area;
B. For achieving a just settlement of the refugee problem;
C. For guaranteeing the territorial inviolability and political independence of every state in the area, through measures including the establishment of demilitarized zones;
D. For achieving a limitation of the wasteful and destructive arms race in the area;

3. Requests the Secretary-General to designate a special representative to proceed to the ME to establish and maintain contacts with the states concerned with a view to assisting them in the working out of solutions in accordance with the purposes of this resolution and in creating a just and lasting peace in the area;
4. Requests the Secretary-General to report to the SC on the progress of the efforts of the special representative as soon as possible.'

Lord Caradon and the British mission at the UN drafted a proposal that combined the essential elements of the various drafts that had already been put on the table or were rumored to be on their way. The main elements of the British draft were the 'land for peace' arrangement expressed in the Indian draft and a linguistic structure that would seek to frame further negotiations by the Jewish and Arab states instead of imposing such sanction-bound requirements as re-defined boundaries and withdrawal timelines:

'The Security Council;
Expressing its continuing concern with the grave situation in the Middle East,

Emphasizing the inadmissibility of the acquisition of territory by war and the need to work for a just and lasting peace in which every State in the area can live in security,

Emphasizing further that all Member States in their acceptance of the Charter of the United Nations have undertaken a commitment to act in accordance with Article 2 of the Charter,

1. Affirms that the fulfillment of Charter principles requires the establishment of a just and lasting peace in the Middle East which should include the application of both the following principles:
(i) Withdrawal of Israeli armed forces from territories occupied in the recent conflict;
(ii)Termination of all claims or states of belligerency and respect for and acknowledgement of the sovereignty, territorial integrity and political independence of every State in the area and their right to live in peace within secure and recognized boundaries free from threats or acts of force;

2. Affirms further the necessity
(a) For guaranteeing freedom of navigation through international waterways in the area;
(b) For achieving a just settlement of the refugee problem;
(c) For guaranteeing the territorial inviolability and political independence of every State in the area, through measures including the establishment of demilitarized zones;

3. Requests the Secretary General to designate a Special Representative to proceed to the Middle East to establish and maintain contacts with the States concerned in order to promote agreement and assist efforts to achieve a peaceful and accepted settlement in accordance with the provisions and principles in this resolution;

4. Requests the Secretary-General to report to the Security Council on the progress of the efforts of the Special Representative as soon as possible.'

This is the only draft of the four submitted (the Soviet Union's being the last) that had an official vote, by which it passed unanimously on November 22, 01967.