PM Transcripts

L A 0 S
Cabinet at its meeting in Melbourne considered in detail
all aspects of the Laotian situation in which it received a comprehensive
report from the Acting Minister for External Affairs.
It had before it analyses and reports received from Australian
diplomatic missions abroad ar4 the views of Australia: s allies
and Commonwealth partners. * In the course of the meeting teletyped
reports of the then current meeting of the security council
and of the most recent reports of events in Laos were received.
Cabinet studied all this material and considered the
likely development of events including courses which might be
taken in the absence of prompt action on the part of the United
Nations. Cabinet endorsed the view that the resolution for a
fact-finding mission propounded in the Security Council by Mr.
Lodge on behalf of the United States and supported by sC w-nny
countries including in the Council itself the United Kingdom,
France, The Republic-of China, the Argentine. Republicq Canada,
Italy, Japan, Panama and Tunisia was most timely and welcome,
and if carried by the Council and promptly implemented would
constitute a distftt advance in the resolution of a situation
which had become acute for the Royal Laotian Government.
Cabinet decided that Australia's representatives overseas
should. be instructed to give any support within their
means to any United Nations effort which resulted from any such
resolution. At the conclusion of the Cabinet meeting advice was received
that the resolution for the appointment of a four-nation
sub-committee of the Security Council to investigate and report
on the situation in Laos had been carried by the Security Council
and that the members to form the Sub-Committee are Argentina,
Italy, Japan and Tunisia.
The day to day developments of the situation will be
kept under constant review by thu Ministers concerned and
dealt with by them in the light of the Cabinet discussions
which took place. Appropriate communication and consultation
with our overseas posts and with our allies in SEATO and Commonwealth
partners will of course continue.
Melbourne, 8th September, 1959.