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c) Submission to the United Nations General Assembly or Security Council — Japan would have the right unilaterally to bring the Liancourt Rocks dispute to the United Nations under Article 35 section 2 of the United Nations Charter, which states:

"A state which is not a Member of the United Nations may bring to the attention of the Security Council or of the General Assembly any dispute, to which it is a party if it accepts in advance, for the purposes of the dispute, the obligations of pacific settlement provided in the present Chapter.",

if it were willing to state, as required by Article 33 of the UN Charter, that the Liancourt Rocks dispute was one "likely to endanger the maintenance of international peace and security." It is indeterminable at this time whether Japan would be willing to go that far. It is also unlikely that the United States and/or the other Members of the anti-Soviet bloc in the United Nations would want to add this grist to the Soviet propaganda mill.

Recommendation

Yes
RN 1. NA/J recommends that the Department of State take no action at this time inasmuch as Foreign Minister Okazaki has has stated that the Japanese Government will try to settle the dispute with the ROK Government by direct negotiation.

Yes
RN 2. However, if the Japanese Government requests the United States Government to act as a mediator in this dispute, NA/J recommends that:

a) the United States should refuse;

b) the United States should suggest that the matter might appropriately be referred to the International Court of Justice. The United States could inform the Japanese Government that this procedure might be preferable to submitting it to the United Nations for the reasons stated above.

Yes
RN
Probably, but not necessarily
RN 3. If the Japanese Government requests the legal opinion of the United States Government on this question, NA/J recommends that the United States should make available to the Japanese Government the United States position on the Liancourt Rocks as stated in the Rusk note of August 10, 1951.

Concurrences

NA/K concurs.

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NA/K - Mr. Treumann

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