1946 United Nations Secretary-General selection

Selection of Trygve Lie 1946 United Nations Secretary-General selection United Nations no 1950 United Nations Secretary-General selection 1950 20 January 1946 – 29 January 1946 UN Secretary-General Trygve Lie Country Vote Vetoes Round Trygve Lie 1938.jpg 125 120 160 0 0 Trygve Lie Norway 11 11 lightblue None 29 January 1946 Lester B. Pearson with a pencil (cropped)x.jpg 125 120 160 0 0 Lester B. Pearson Canada 1921 No formal vote USSR 1936 29 January 1946 The United Nations Secretary-General selection of 1946 took place at the opening session of the United Nations in London. The General Assembly first voted on the membership of the Security Council, which then selected the first Secretary-General of the United Nations. The United States and the United Kingdom supported Lester B. Pearson of Canada for Secretary-General, but the Soviet Union opposed Pearson since the permanent headquarters of the United Nations would be in North America. The Security Council compromised on Trygve Lie of Norway, who had lost the election for President of the General Assembly to Paul-Henri Spaak of Belgium. Background The Secretary-General of the United Nations is appointed by the General Assembly on the recommendation of the Security Council. However, the United Nations Charter provides little guidance for the appointment process. President of the General Assembly The Secretary-Generalship was initially overshadowed by the Presidency of the General Assembly. Trygve Lie of Norway and Paul-Henri Spaak of Belgium were the leading candidates for the Presidency. The United States and the Soviet Union favored Lie, but the other permanent members preferred Spaak.FRUS 1946 I Document 76: Minutes by the United States Delegation of the Five-Power Informal Meeting, Held at London, Foreign Office, January 9, 1946, 3:30 p.m. After discovering that Adlai Stevenson had picked Trygve Lie and approached the Norwegian and Soviet ambassadors to gain their support, U.S. Secretary of State James F. Byrnes decided that the United States had to vote for Lie to avoid "break[ing] faith with two governments." Although Byrnes thought that Lie's candidacy was hopeless, several Latin American countries decided to switch sides and vote with the United States.FRUS 1946 I Document 79: The Secretary of State to the Acting Secretary of State (Acheson), London, January 10, 1946—midnight When the General Assembly opened on 10 January 1946, the Soviet Union nominated Lie and attempted to elect him by acclamation. After this maneuver was rejected, the General Assembly proceeded to vote by secret ballot. In the confusion, Spaak's supporters forgot to enter a formal nomination. Nevertheless, Paul-Henri Spaak defeated Trygve Lie for President of the General Assembly in a vote of 28–23.Reston James B. UNO Opened; Attlee Asks World Unity The New York Times 1 11 January 1946 https://www.nytimes.com/1946/01/11/archives/uno-opened-attlee-asks-world-unity-spaak-is-elected-belgian-is.html Candidates Candidates for Secretary-General Image Candidate Position Regional group 90px France 1830 Henri Bonnet Ambassador of France to the United States Western Europe 90px Netherlands Eelco van Kleffens Foreign Minister of the Netherlands Western Europe 90px Norway Trygve Lie Foreign Minister of Norway Western Europe 90px Canada 1921 Lester B. Pearson Ambassador of Canada to the United States British Commonwealth 90px Poland 1928 Wincenty Rzymowski Foreign Minister of Poland Eastern Europe and Asia 90px Yugoslavia Stanoje Simić Ambassador of Yugoslavia to the United States Eastern Europe and Asia Consultations After the General Assembly elected the non-permanent members of the Security Council on 12 January 1946, attention turned to the Secretary-Generalship. The British government favored U.S. General Dwight D. Eisenhower, but Eisenhower turned down the nomination.Wallace is Urged to Head UNO Staff The New York Times 8 15 January 1946 https://www.nytimes.com/1946/01/15/archives/wallace-is-urged-to-head-uno-staff-polish-delegate-lobbies-for.html The United States felt that "no national of the Big Five should be selected for the post."FRUS 1946 I Document 83: Memorandum by the Principal Adviser to the United States Delegation (Hiss) to the Secretary of State, January 16, 1946. The United States had favored Spaak for Secretary-General, with Alger Hiss noting that his only shortcoming was that he could not speak English. Although the State Department would be "delighted" with Lester B. Pearson of Canada, it felt that the Secretary-General would have to be "non-American" since the permanent UN headquarters would be in the United States.FRUS 1946 I Document 70: Minutes of the First Meeting of the United States Delegation, on Board the Queen Elizabeth, January 2, 1946, 11 a.m. However, Spaak was only willing to serve as President of the General Assembly,Spaak is Success as Assembly Head The New York Times 3 14 January 1946 https://www.nytimes.com/1946/01/14/archives/spaak-is-success-as-assembly-head-belgian-so-well-liked-as-uno.htmlFRUS 1946 I Document 75: Memorandum of Conversation, by the Principal Adviser to the United States Delegation (Hiss), January 8, 1946 and his election as president took him out of the running for Secretary-General. The permanent members met for informal consultations on 20 January 1946.Gruson Sydney Big 5 Group in UNO Meet on Atom Body The New York Times 3 21 January 1946 https://www.nytimes.com/1946/01/21/archives/big-5-group-in-uno-meet-on-atom-body-byrnes-and-others-discuss-also.html U.S. Secretary of State James Byrnes nominated Lester B. Pearson, the Canadian Ambassador to the United States. Soviet ambassador Andrei Gromyko opposed Pearson on the basis of geography, nominating Stanoje Simic, the Yugoslav Ambassador to the United States. France then nominated its own Ambassador to the United States, Henri Bonnet. China and the United Kingdom supported Pearson.FRUS 1946 I Document 85: Minutes by the United States Delegation of the Five-Power Informal Meeting, Held at London, Claridge's Hotel, January 20, 1946 At an informal consultation of the full Security Council on 21 January 1946, three Foreign Ministers were added to the list of candidates: Wincenty Rzymowski of Poland, Trygve Lie of Norway, Eelco van Kleffens of the Netherlands.Six Names Offered for UNO Secretary The New York Times 4 22 January 1946 https://www.nytimes.com/1946/01/22/archives/six-names-offered-for-uno-secretary-security-council-is-nearing.htmlFRUS 1946 I Document 68: Minutes by the United States Delegation of the Five-Power Informal Meeting, London, Claridge's Hotel, January 23, 1946, 11 a.m. At an informal consultation of the permanent members on 23 January 1946,Reston James B. Big 5 Seek Accord on UNO Secretary The New York Times 5 24 January 1946 https://www.nytimes.com/1946/01/24/archives/big-5-seek-accord-on-uno-secretary-no-agreement-reached-at-security.html French delegate Joseph Paul-Boncour advocated for selecting a foreign minister instead of an ambassador. He felt that Trygve Lie, the Norwegian Foreign Minister, would be a good choice except that he could not speak French. None of the other countries changed their positions. The permanent members decided to hold another consultation of the full Security Council and then vote, even if it resulted in a veto.FRUS 1946 I Document 87: Minutes by the United States Delegation of the Five-Power Informal Meeting, London, Claridge’s Hotel, January 23, 1946, 11 a.m. Meanwhile, the General Assembly established a 5-year term with the possibility of appointment to another 5-year term.UNO Establishes Terms For Secretary General The New York Times 3 25 January 1946 Since a Soviet veto of Pearson was expected, the U.S. delegation debated whether Trygve Lie was an acceptable alternative. Eleanor Roosevelt, and John G. Townsend Jr. felt that Lie would be independent of the Soviet Union. However, Arthur Vandenberg was "not impressed" and felt that the defeated Soviet candidate for President of the General Assembly would be "getting a better job." John Foster Dulles said that Lie had once "cast a vote because of the presence of Russian troops on Norway's border." Vandenberg and Dulles felt that Lie "would not dare to be a free agent." Although the United States still preferred Pearson, U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Edward Stettinius Jr. was "authorized to vote for Mr. Lie in case of an emergency."FRUS 1946 I Document 90: Minutes of the Meeting of the United States Delegation (Executive Session), Held at London, Claridge’s Hotel, January 26, 1946, 3:00 p.m. On 28 January 1946, the permanent members met again for informal consultations. France remained opposed to Lie on the grounds of his inability to speak French. The Soviet Union remained opposed to Pearson, but the Soviet delegate offered to vote for Lie on his own responsibility. After China agreed to accept Lie in place of Pearson, the French delegate changed his mind. The British delegate then stated that he was bound by instructions from the government, but he would not veto Lie.FRUS 1946 I Document 91: Minutes by the United States Delegation of the Five-Power Informal Meeting, Held at London, Claridge's Hotel, January 28, 1946, 9 p.m. The Soviets had previously argued for Poland and Yugoslavia on the grounds of their occupation by Germany during World War II. Conveniently, Norway had also been occupied by Germany.Norwegian Leads as UNO Secretary The New York Times 4 29 January 1946 Vote On 29 January 1946, the Security Council voted unanimously to recommend Trygvie Lie to the General Assembly.Reston James B. UNO Council Picks Lie, a Norwegian, for Secretaryship The New York Times 1 30 January 1946 https://www.nytimes.com/1946/01/30/archives/uno-council-picks-lie-a-norwegian-for-secretaryship-security-body.html On 1 February 1946, the General Assembly ratified the appointment with three dissenting votes.Secretary Ratified by Assembly of UNO The New York Times 3 2 February 1946 https://www.nytimes.com/1946/02/02/archives/secretary-ratified-by-assembly-of-uno.html Lie took office on 2 February 1946.Lie Takes Office in UNO Ceremony The New York Times 3 3 February 1946 https://www.nytimes.com/1946/02/03/archives/lie-takes-office-in-uno-ceremony-secretary-general-swears-he-will.html Notes References General; the United Nations https://history.state.gov/historicaldocuments/frus1946v01 Foreign Relations of the United States, 1946 I Goodwin Ralph R. Petersen Neal H. Kranz Marvin W. Slany William 1972 Washington United States Government Printing Office CITEREFFRUS 1946 I 1946