Spain 1946 (Resolutions 4 (1946), 7 (1946) and 10 (1946))

Chapter 3 Spain 1946 (Resolutions 4 (1946), 7 (1946) and 10 (1946))

1 Relevance to the Overall Project

The situation in Spain in 1946—the continued existence of the fascist regime under General Franco—represents the first occasion where the Security Coun- cil considered the meaning of ‘threat to the peace’ under Article 39 of the Char- ter. In this situation, a draft resolution brought under Articles 39 and 41 was defeated through insufficient votes (including votes against from China, the UK and the US—although these were not considered vetoes, as the resolution did not meet the required threshold to pass).1 The Repertoire of Practice of the Security Council noted a significant discussion, particularly in meetings 34 and 46, on this issue and opted to include the fact-finding Sub-Committee’s recom- mendation that the situation did not meet the threshold for action under Ar- ticle 39.2 The debate centred predominantly around the differences between Articles 34 and 39, and the point at which the Security Council was autho- rised to overrule Article 2(7) to fulfil its mandate for maintaining international peace and security.

2 Context of the Debates

The vast bulk of the context to the debates and statements on this situation was generated by the initial statements on the issue by Poland (which brought the matter before the Security Council), which drew heavily upon ‘The White Book issued on 4 March 1946 by the State Department of the United States of America under the title “The Spanish Government and the Axis: Official Ger- man documents”’.3 Using this source, Poland outlined the rise of the Franco regime in Spain with the support of the Axis powers, purportedly against the

1 Dag Hammarskjöld Library, ‘Security Council – Veto List’, Dag Hammarskjöld Library Re- search Guides, 19 August 2018, http://research.un.org/en/docs/sc/quick/veto. 2 Repertoire of the Practice of the Security Council, ‘Chapter xi: Considerations of Chapter vii the Charter (1946–51)’ (United Nations), 424–26. 3 United Nations Security Council, ‘Security Council, First Year: 34th Meeting (S/PV.34)’ (Unit- ed Nations, 17 April 1946), 157–59.

46 Chapter 3 will of the Spanish people, prior to World War ii.4 Poland then outlined Span- ish support for the Axis powers during World War ii, commencing in August 1940.5 With this background established, Poland tabled intelligence documents showing military activity by the Franco regime in the Pyrenees along the French border.6 On the basis of this history (and the German use of Span- ish industry to circumvent the Treaty of Versailles military construction bans)7 and current activities, Poland requested the Security Council determine that the existence of the Franco regime constituted a ‘threat to the peace’ and that all UN members should sever diplomatic ties with Spain.8 The Security Coun- cil formed a fact-finding sub-committee to investigate whether the situation indeed constituted a ‘threat to the peace’,9 and their factual situation reports were consistent with the Polish statements.10 The Sub-Committee found that although the Franco regime constituted a ‘potential menace to international peace and security’,11 it failed to meet the threshold of ‘threat to the peace’.12 On the basis of the recommendations from the fact-finding mission, the draft resolution for Article 39 and 41 action against Spain failed to pass by a vote of seven against to four in favour (with China, the UK and the US voting against).13

3 Justificatory Discourse of the P5

The primary differences in the P5’s justificatory discourse hinged on whether the concept of ‘threat to the peace’ could be grounded in political ideology, or if it was a question of factual conduct. Russia and France argued that a government’s political ideology could, with sufficient grounds, lead to the existence

4 United Nations Security Council, 155–56. 5 United Nations Security Council, 157–59. 6 United Nations Security Council, 160. 7 United Nations Security Council, 163–65. 8 United Nations Security Council, 160–61. 9 ‘Resolution 4 (1946)’, S/RES/4 (1946) UN Security Council (1946). 10 United Nations Security Council, ‘The Report of the Sub-Committee on the Spanish Ques- tion Appointed by the Security Council on 29 April 1946’ (United Nations, 1 June 1946); United Nations Security Council, ‘Factual Findings Concerning the Spanish Situation: Supplementary Memorandum to the Report of the Sub-Committee Appointed by the Se- curity Council on 29 April 1946’ (United Nations, 1 June 1946). 11 United Nations Security Council, ‘The Report of the Sub-Committee on the Spanish Ques- tion Appointed by the Security Council on 29 April 1946’, para. 30. 12 United Nations Security Council, ‘Security Council, First Year: 44th Meeting (S/PV.44)’ (United Nations, 6 June 1946), 315. 13 United Nations Security Council, ‘Security Council, First Year: 48th Meeting (S/PV.48)’ (United Nations, 24 June 1946), 388.