THE GENERAL PACT FOR THE RENUNCIATION OF DECEMBER 7 AND 11, 1928 PART 1 THE LIBRARY OF THE OCT 23 1929 Printed for the use of the Committee on Foreign Relations OF ILLINOIS F7149 GENERAL PACT FOR THE RENUNCIATION OF WAR FRIDAY, DECEMBER 7, 1928 UNITED STATES SENATE, COMMITTEE ON FOREIGN RELATIONS, Washington, D. C. The committee met, pursuant to call, at 10.30 o'clock a. m., in the room of the committee in the Capitol, Senator William E. Borah presiding. Present, Senators Borah (chairman), Johnson, Moses, McLean, Edge, Gillett, Reed of Pennsylvania, Fess, Swanson, Pittman, Robinson of Arkansas, Walsh of Montana, Reed of Missouri, Harrison, Bayard, George, and Shipstead. (The committee had under consideration the following:) GENERAL PACT FOR THE RENUNCIATION OF WAR-SIGNED AT PARIS AUGUST 27, 1928 The President of the German Reich, the President of the United States of America, His Majesty the King of the Belgians, the President of the French Republic, His Majesty the King of Great Britain, Ireland and the British Dominions beyond the Seas, Emperor of India, His Majesty the King of Italy, His Majesty the Emperor of Japan, the President of the Republic of Poland, the President of the Czechoslovak Republic, Deeply sensible of their solemn duty to promote the welfare of mankind; Persuaded that the time has come when a frank renunciation of war as an instrument of national policy should be made to the end that the peaceful and friendly relations now existing between their peoples may be perpetuated; Convinced that all changes in their relations with one another should be sought only by pacific means and be the result of a peaceful and orderly process, and that any signatory power which shall hereafter seek to promote its national interests by resort to war should be denied the benefits furnished by this treaty; Hopeful that, encouraged by their example, all the other nations of the world will join in this humane endeavor and by adhering to the present treaty as soon as it comes into force bring their peoples within the scope of its beneficent provisions, thus uniting the civilized nations of the world in a common renunciation of war as an instrument of their national policy; Have decided to conclude a treaty and for that purpose have appointed as their respective plenipotentiaties: The President of the German Reich: Dr. Gustav Stresemann, Minister of Foreign Affairs; The President of the United States of America: The Hon. Frank B. Kellogg, Secretary of State; His Majesty the King of the Belgians: Mr. Paul Hymans, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Minister of State: The President of the French Republic: Mr. Aristide Briand, Minister for Foreign Affairs; His Majesty the King of Great Britain, Ireland and the British Dominions beyond the Seas, Emperor of India: For Great Britain and Northern Ireland and all parts of the British Empire which are not separate members of the League of Nations: The Right Hon. Lord Cushendun, Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, Acting Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs; For the Dominion of Canada: The Right Hon. William Lyon Mackenzie King, Prime Minister and Minister for External Affairs; For the Commonwealth of Australia: The Hon. Alexander John McLachlan, Member of the Executive Federal Council; For the Dominion of New Zealand: The Hon. Sir Christopher James Parr, High Commissioner for New Zealand in Great Britain; For the Union of South Africa: The Hon. Jacobus Stephanus Smit, High Commissioner for the Union of South Africa in Great Britain; For the Irish Free State: Mr. William Thomas Cosgrave, President of the Executive Council; For India: The Right Hon. Lord Cushendun, Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, Acting Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs; His Majesty the King of Italy: Count Gaetano Manzoni, his Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary at Paris. His Majesty the Emporer of Japan: Count Uchida, Privy Councillor; The President of the Republic of Poland: Mr. A. Zaleski, Minister for Foreign Affairs; The President of the Czechoslovak Republic: Dr. Eduard Benès, Minister for Foreign Affairs; who, having communicated to one another their full powers found in good and due form have agreed upon the following articles: ARTICLE 1 The high contracting parties solemnly declare in the names of their respective peoples that they condemn recourse to war for the solution of international controversies, and renounce it as an instrument of national policy in their relations with one another. ARTICLE 2 The high contracting parties agree that the settlement or solution of all disputes or conflicts of whatever nature or of whatever origin they may be, which may arise among them, shall never be sought except by pacific means. ARTICLE 3 The present treaty shall be ratified by the high contracting parties named in the preamble in accordance with their respective constitutional requirements, and shall take effect as between them as soon as all their several instruments of ratification shall have been deposited at Washington. This treaty shall, when it has come into effect as prescribed in the preceding paragraph, remain open as long as may be necessary for adherence by all the other powers of the world. Every instrument evidencing the adherence of a power shall be deposited at Washington and the treaty shall immediately upon such deposit become effective as between the power thus adhering and the other powers parties hereto. It shall be the duty of the Government of the United States to furnish each government named in the preamble and every government subsequently adhering to this treat y with a certified copy of the treaty and of every instrument of ratification or adherence. It shall also be the duty of the Government of the United States telegraphically to notify such governments immediately upon the deposit with it of each instrument of ratification or adherence. In faith whereof the respective plenipotentiaries have signed this treaty in the French and English languages, both texts having equal force, and hereunto affix their seals. Done at Paris, the twenty-seventh day of August in the year one thousand nine hundred and twenty-eight. STATEMENT OF HON. FRANK B. KELLOGG, SECRETARY OF STATE The CHAIRMAN. Mr. Secretary, the committee asked that you be with us to-day for the purpose of going over this treaty. If you desire, you can make any sort of statement you wish, or the committee may ask you questions, whichever you prefer. Secretary KELLOGG. It is immaterial to me. I understood from you the committee wanted to know whether this treaty was a recognition of Russia and the Russian Soviet Government. Senator JOHNSON. Will you pardon me, just an instant, because of a suggestion that was made by Senator McLean at the last gathering of the committee. Is what we do here now to be considered in executive session, or is it for publicity? The CHAIRMAN. I should suppose it was in executive session, unless we made up our minds hereafter to make it public. Secretary KELLOGG. I should think it should be in executive session; and I might want to correct the language of my statement. After that, if you want to use it in the Senate, I have no objection. The CHAIRMAN. All right. Mr. Secretary, suppose we take up first the question of what are these supposed reservations; the position of France and the position of Great Britain as expressed in their notes, which are referred to in popular parlance as reservations. What is your judgment or what is your view as to the effect of those communications as constituting any changes in the treaty or modifications of the treaty? Senator JOHNSON. May I ask the chairman, before the Secretary answers that, have we in the form of the communications before us the general text of the reservations where the very words are inserted? Secretary KELLOGG. I did not hear that clearly. Senator JOHNSON. We have the communications before us? Secretary KELLOGG. Any communications made with any of the governments up to the signing of the treaty have been published. I made up my mind when we started negotiations that the only way to obtain this treaty was to publish every note as it was delivered, and I do not think the treaty would ever have been signed if it had not been for the opinion of the world passing on these notes as they appeared, so that every country had full opportunity to discuss the treaty, and if they believed there were any obligations imposed on the United States beyond the agreement not to go to war, I think they would have suggested it. They knew, from the notes that I wrote, that I was not willing to impose any obligation on the United |