Wartime American Plans for a New Hungary

AN EAST EUROPEAN UNION

(as considered to June 19, 1942)

Secret P Document 24

Basic Assumptions

The regional organization should have the form not of a federation but of a union of independent and sovereign states, cooperating for limited objectives through common non-legislative institutions, loosely rather than tightly organized. Provisionally the union is considered as including all states of Central and Eastern Europe between Russia and Germany from and including Estonia on the North to Austria on the West and Greece on the South.

The union should be imposed, if necessary, and should be guided for an indeterminate time, by the United Nations.

Its main object should be security, but economic incentives and advantages should be developed. Over-all international security would be guaranteed by the United Nations and the world organization, and the security organization of the union should be integrated with the world security organization within which should function.

The United Nations should promote the formation and stability of the union by making all necessary boundary adjustments in the region as rapidly as possible after the war.

Summary of Functions of Regional Organization

(1) Security relations with the outside world and with international

organization;

(2) Intra-regional security and order by means of a regional constab-

ulary or gendarmerie;

(3) Foreign relations of the union as such, and cognizance of

external relations of component states;

(4) Intra-regional economic relations; and

(5) Economic relations with the outside world.

Constitution

The regional constitution, in the form of articles of union, would include written guaranties of certain individual and group rights--certain civil rights such as freedom of speech and religion, free elections, and rights of ethnic minorities. The union organization would have clearly defined and limited powers at the beginning, with the possibility of growth provided.

Executive

An executive would be chosen by majority vote of the political council (or presidium) and empowered to carry out delegated duties in regard to security. He would be subject to removal by, and special instructions from the political council.

Political Council

(a) Composition. The political council should consist of two members from each component state. One of the representatives from each state should be the Prime Minister or his plenipotentiary; the order should be a representative of the national parliament or his alternate.

(b) Functions. At the outset at least the functions of the political council would deliberately be limited. Its sole executive function would be the maintenance of intra- regional security, effected through control of the regional gendarmerie. It would establish and exact the regional quota of forces required of the component states for the maintenance of the gendarmerie of the union. And it would be responsible for filling the regional quota required for the police force of the international security organization. Discharge of the security function would be lodged in the executive described above.

Its political functions would include the foreign policy of the union in its relations with the rest of the world, and the taking of cognizance of any national relations of component states with outside nations or groups which were in violation of the undertakings of the union. The council would seek to prevent disputes between component states or to undertake their settlement so far as possible. And it would decide the contribution of the component states for the necessary expenses of the union.

Its administrative functions would be the maintenance of a regional administration including a central secretariat. Whether this council would have responsibility for collection and apportionment of customs duties remains under discussion.

The members of the council would be responsible for the action by their individual governments to secure national approval and enforce- ment of decisions.

Economic Council

(a) General Nature. The economic council would be separate from the political council. It would be an advisory body except in certain contingencies not yet agreed upon. Its recommendations would be referred to the governments of the component states for approval. It would represent the region as a whole, and not merely the interests of individual states; accordingly the council might be called "Council for the Economic Development of the East European Union." This council might be the medium through which international plans for economic development of the region were handled.

(b) Functions. This council would be charged with making recom- mendations of the governments of the component states on economic interests of concern to the region, and it would have powers as broad as possible to initiate recommendations on general economic policies. Remaining under discussion are (a) whether it should be responsible for union administration of economic arrangements approved by the component states, and (b) whether it should be charged with enumerated functions relating to such matters as freedom of transit, communica- tions, etc., in the union as a whole.

(c) Composition. Each state should be represented in the economic council by not more than five experts. Each state would select any number of experts up to the maximum. Such experts wou1d be selected by the government in each state, from the Central Bank, industry, labor, agriculture, and the professional classes. The terms of reference to the governments regarding the selection of representatives should stress that the delegates should know what they were to consider and should be competent as experts in those subjects. The experts would be assisted by staffs.

(d) Tenure of office of the members. The length of terms of the members would not be fixed.

(e) Voting. The delegation from each state in the economic council would vote as a unit. The question of voting in the council as to recommendations remains for discussion after receipt of a report on the economic council requested from the subcommittee on economic problems;the proposed possible solutions are: (a) no percentage specified and minority views circulated with the recommendations; and (b) a fixed percentage of two-thirds or three-fourths; and possibly unanimity in certain matters. As to approval by the states of the recommenda- tions, tentative conclusion of views is also deferred until the requested report is received; proposed possibilities are that two-thirds or three- fourths of the component states should approve measures to become effective for the entire union, but possible unanimity should be stipulated in certain matters. While a "double majority" of the same percentage,-- e.g., two-thirds of the council and of the states,--might be a satisfactory solution, it might be feasible to require only a simple (or two-thirds) majority in the council if the required number of state approvals were set at a higher majority of two-thirds (or three-fourths).

Any number of states could voluntarily undertake common measures they might desire provided not contrary to the articles of union.

(f) Foreign Advisers. Three economic advisers would be appointed by the United Nations to represent them in the economic council. These advisers would serve for three-year terms but initially so scaled that one might come up for appointment or re-appointment after one year, the second after two years, and the third after three years. No one of the three should come from Europe (including Russia). These advisers wouid have a voice in the council but have no vote or veto power. Their practical power would reside in the denia1 or grant of economic benefits by the United Nations. They should advise the whole council, not the component delegations. They should be compe- tent on economic problems in general. They would be assisted by staffs. They should have the widest possible power of initiative with respect to recommendations on economic problems of the region.

The advisers should be closely linked to appropriate world organiza- tion committees which would be established, (possibly similar to the Economic and Financial Committee of the League of Nations); these committees might appoint the advisers or they might be selected by some type of United Nations' body, perhaps set up for the purpose, representing the United Nations' authority. These matters were deferred for discussion in connection with problems of world organiza- tion.

Judicial Organization

A regional judicial system would be created, to include a regional court with provision for appeals to a court of international justice in cases important to the union or its members. Appeals are envisaged in the following:

(1) disputes or differences between component states;

(2) any cases arising from an allegation that any state had not

performed its duties under the Articles of Union;

(3) any allegation by an individual that the Bill of Rights had not

been carried out in respect of him and that he had no redress.

The Component States of the Union: Rights and Duties

Each state of the union could maintain the diplomatic relations customary to independent and sovereign states. Each state would be responsible for contributing to the international security force such quota as the political council agreed each state should provide. Contributions of men from state would be in accordance with the population. The state quotas of men in the regional gendarmerie are neither envisaged to be situated in the states from whence they came, nor in the event of need to use union security forces to maintain peace in the union would the state quotas be used in their own states if avoidable. No state would have national military forces; municipal police forces only would be permitted in the states.

States would retain the power to approve or disapprove the recommendations from the economic council, and they would be free voluntarily to make economic arrangements among each other that were not in violation of the articles of union. Remaining under discussion is the percentage of state approvals of recommendations which would be required for adoption as binding in the union.

In the event of a regional approach to international organization, the delegates of each state to the international political organization might be its two representatives in the political council of the union, voting by states rather than together as a region, but this remains for consider- ation in connection with world organization.

Relations with the United Nations and International Organization: Summary of Tentative Views

(a) Gendarmerie. The United Nations would vest control of the regional gendarmerie in the political council after making the essential decisions concerning military forces in the region. The commanding officers would at the outset be selected by the United Nations, which would also determine the size of the force for a stated period.

(b) Security. The general security organization would require of the union the regional quota or contribution necessary for the international police force. Regional security arrangements would be integrated with the general security system.

(c) Political Relations. The union as such might not be represented in the international political organization; this remains for later consideration.

(d) Economic Relations. The United Nations would give advice to the union on economic questions through three advisers.

(e) Judicial Relations. Provision for appeal from the judicial organization or tribunal of the union to an international judicial organization would be made.

Box 56

Wartime American Plans for a New Hungary