Geneva, Nov. 30. -- The first session of the League [of] Nations preparatory disarmament commission, fraught [with?] hazards because of the presence of Soviet Russia [missing word] program of complete disarmament, produced these [missing word?] developments today:
1 -- A security commission was appointed to investigate the complicated problem of security which France and other nations contend must precede disarmament. Maxim [Litvinov], soviet assistant foreign commissar and head of his country's delegation, originally had maintained that disarmament begets security.
2 -- Russia decided to accept an invitation to send an observer to the security commission, thereby indicating her willingness to join with the other nations in working out a practicable -– rather than idealistic -- scheme of disarmament.
3 -- [Litvinov] presented, a few minutes after the preparatory disarmament commission meeting was called to order, Russia's sweeping disarmament program, containing 13 points which called for the complete breaking down of the military structure, including demobilization of men, abandonment of conscription and scrapping of land, sea and air forces.
4 -- Debate on these 13 points, which would have caused a definite split between eastern and western Europe, was postponed, enabling the 23 nations participating in the conference to work together on a harmonious basis.
5 -- A joint meeting of the security commission and disarmament commission probably will be held in February, 1928, when the agenda for the real disarmament conference will be formulated.
The conference began under circumstances not too auspicious. Many of the delegates privately expressed cynicism of the ability of the conference to believe anything. An American observer remarked: "It is a congress of bootleggers trying to enforce prohibition."
The first session of the new commission will be held Thursday. The final meeting of the disarmament commission probably will be held Friday, its most important work for this conference having been completed, namely, creation of the security commission.
These are the soviet's 13 points which embody the Russian philosophy that no arms means no war:
1 -- Dissolution of all land, sea and air forces and their non-admittance in any concealed form whatever.
2 -- Destruction of all weapons and military supplies and the means of chemical warfare.
3 -- Scrapping of all warships and military air vessels.
4 -- Discontinuance of military training and conscription.
5 -- Legislation for the abolition of military service, either compulsory, voluntary or recruited.
6 -- Legislation prohibiting the calling up of trained reserves.
7 -- Destruction of naval and air bases.
8 -- Scrapping of military plants, factories and war industries.
9 -- Discontinuance of assigning funds for military purposes both on the state budget and the budgets of public bodies.
10 -- Abolition of military, naval and air ministries, dissolution of general staffs and every kind of military administration.
11 -- Legislative prohibition of military propaganda and military education.
12 -- Prohibition of patenting of all armaments, removing the incentive for such inventions.
13 -- Legislation making infringement of the above stipulations a grave crime against the state.
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