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(3) to consider and report to the Assembly on the methods to be adopted to give effect to the Charter provisions for the study of methods of conciliation for the maintenance of peace; (4) to consider whether a special session of the Assembly should at any time be called to consider a particular matter; (5) to conduct investigations and appoint commissions of inquiry provided the consent is obtained of the State in whose territory the inquiry is to take place ; (6) to report to the Assembly on the desirability of making the Interim Committee permanent. That the Interim Committee was to have no more power than its parent body, the Assembly, vis-a-vis the Security Council and was to have the same rules of voting as the Assembly (two-thirds on substantive issues, not simple majority as some desired) was a cause of disappointment to a few delegations ; but these provisions were recognized, except by the Soviet group, to be persuasive evidence of the constitutionality of the Interim Committee. The representatives of the Soviet Union and the Slav countries attacked the proposal as " a flagrant violation of the Charter " —a scheme to substitute for and to by-pass the Security Council and to undermine the very basis of the United Nations—namely, the rule of unanimity between the Great Powers ; and they made it clear that they would boycott this " unconstitutional " body. The Interim Committee (attended by all members of the United Nations except the Slav group) met twice in January, four times in February, and three times in March. The discussions on Korea are noted elsewhere in this report; in addition, the following subjects were considered : {a) voting in the Security Council; (b) principles of international co-operation, including the peaceful settlement of disputes; (c) the advisability of making the Interim Committee permanent. The detailed work on these questions has been entrusted to sub-committees, on which New Zealand, owing to the small size of its staffs at New York and Washington, has unfortunately not been able to be represented. (a) Voting in the Security Council (" The Veto ") The Interim Committee was asked by the General Assembly to consider the problem of voting in the Security Council, taking into account all proposals made by members ; to consult with a Committee of the Security Council; and to report its conclusions to the third regular session of the General Assembly. Nine States made proposals which ranged from those of Argentina (for a conference to revise the Charter) and New Zealand (for revising the Charter to give the veto only to any two of the Great Powers rather than to any one) to the milder proposal of the United Kingdom for a " gentleman's agreement" among the Great Powers.

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