September 25, 1959
ALGERIA: United Nations, New York, 25 – At today’s session of the UN General Assembly, delegates from Denmark, Pakistan, Austria, Italy, Saudi Arabia and Belgium were among the speakers. The Belgian and Pakistani delegates expressed their approval of France’s plan for Algeria. The Saudi foreign minister called on France to be truly democratic and hold a referendum «if that is what [French President Charles] de Gaulle truly wants.» He harshly criticized the French army’s activities in Algeria and said de Gaulle’s plan was one of «deception and pure chaos.» The French president’s proposal, he said, was a dead letter that had been tossed in the UN’s lap and emphasized that some had hastened to accept it as the solution to the Algerian problem. In a show of protest, the French delegation waked out of the hall and the session was adjourned shortly afterward. GEORGES BIDAULT: The former French Prime Minister Georges Bidault arrived in Greece on the steamship Mediterranean, accompanied by his wife. Bidault will remain in the country for two weeks as the guest of an Athenian family, and will tour the country visiting archaeological sites.
