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(e) Admission of New Members At the second special session of the General Assembly, Burma was admitted to membership of the United Nations. During April, 1948, the Security Council reconsidered the applications of Albania, Austria, Bulgaria, Finland, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Mongolian People's Republic, Portugal, Roumania, and Transjordan. The application of Italy was vetoed by the Soviet Union, and consequently no vote was taken on the other applications. In accordance with an Assembly resolution of November, 1947, the International Court of Justice submitted to the third session of the Assembly an advisory opinion on the question whether a member is juridically entitled to make its consent to the admission of a State dependent on conditions not expressly provided by the Charter, and in particular on the condition that other States be simultaneously admitted. A majority of the Judges returned a negative answer. Over Soviet opposition the Assembly decided to recommend that each member of the Security Council and the General Assembly should act in accordance with this opinion in voting on membership applications. Noting "the general sentiment in favour of the universality of the United Nations," the General Assembly called on the Security Council to reconsider all applications so far received. The applications of Austria, Ceylon, Finland, Ireland, Italy, Portugal, and Transjordan were mentioned individually as fulfilling, in the Assembly's opinion, the conditions of admission laid down by the Charter. The New Zealand delegation, which supported all the resolutions adopted, took a particular interest in the application of the new Commonwealth member, Ceylon. Criticizing the obstructive attitude of the Soviet Union, allegedly based on doubt of Ceylon's independence, the New Zealand representative quoted the recent declaration of the Commonwealth Prime Ministers that Ceylon enjoyed the same independent status as the Commonwealth members of the United Nations. It was permissible, he said, to ask questions to resolve those doubts, but not to pay no attention to the answers. However, in spite of strenuous efforts to obtain a compromise, the Soviet delegation remained adamant, and in December, 1948, again vetoed the application of Ceylon in the Security Council. In March, 1949, the Security Council decided to recommend to the General Assembly that Israel be admitted to membership of the United Nations. Cf) Voting in_ the Security Council This question was among those referred by the second session of the Assembly to the Interim Committee for study. In its report to the third session of the Assembly the Committee made four practical recommendations : firstly, that thirty-six possible decisions