United Nations General Assembly Resolution 25

by the UN General Assembly

25. Question of the Headquarters of the United Nations.

The General Assembly resolves that:

I. Permanent Headquarters

(a) The permanent headquarters of the United Nations shall be established in Westchester (New York) and/or Fairfield (Connecticut) counties, i.e. near to New York City.

(b) A Headquarters Commission shall proceed as soon as possible to the region mentioned in (a) above, with a view to carrying out an exhaustive study thereof and making recommendations to the General Assembly at the second part of its first session regarding the exact location to be selected within the aforementioned general region.

(c) The Headquarters Commission shall draw up plans based on the assumption that the United Nations will acquire approximately:

(i) 2 square miles

(ii) 5 square miles

(iii) 10 square miles

(iv) 20 square miles

(v) 40 square miles

with details in each case of the approximate cost of acquiring the land and buildings within these areas.

(d) The Headquarters Commission shall ascertain what measures the federal, state and county authorities in the United States of America are prepared to take in order to control development in the territory adjacent to the zone.

(e) On the basis of the information thus provided, the General Assembly at the second part of its first session shall make a final decision as to:

(i) The exact area required;

(ii) The exact location of the permanent headquarters within the aforementioned Westchester-Fairfield region.

(f) This resolution does not imply any financial commitments of the United Nations (other than the expenses of the Headquarters Commission) and does not impose any financial obligations on its Members, and the General Assembly remains free to decide these questions at the second part of its first session according to Article 17, paragraphs 1 and 2, and Article 18, paragraph 2, of the Charter.

II. Interim Headquarters

The interim headquarters of the United Nations shall be located in New York City.

III. Headquarters Commission

(a) A Headquarters Commission composed of representatives of Australia, Uruguay, China, France, Iraq, Netherlands, United Kingdom, Union of Soviet Socialist Republics and Yugoslavia shall be set up to carry out the tasks entrusted to it under the first part of this resolution regarding the permanent headquarters.

(b) The Headquarters Commission may be assisted by experts including planning engineers, lawyers, real estate experts, financial advisers and other appropriate experts who, at the request of the Secretary-General, shall be designated by the Government of the United States of America.

(c) The Secretary-General shall consult with the Headquarters Commission or the experts assisting it, as he may deem necessary or appropriate, on problems which may arise in connection with the temporary installation of the various organs of the United Nations in the United States of America, the material arrangements for the holding of the second part of the first session of the General Assembly in September 1946, and the housing of the delegates, secretariat and other personnel who may be required to reside for longer or shorter periods near the temporary headquarters of the Organization.

(d) The Secretary-General is authorized to pay the expenses of the members of and to compensate the experts attached to the Headquarters Commission on such basis and in such form as may appear to him most appropriate.

(e) The Headquarters Commission shall submit its final report on all matters referred to it to the General Assembly at the second part of its first session.

(f) The General Assembly, during the course of the second part of its first session, shall give consideration to the appointment of a Planning Commission of experts as recommended, in chapter X, section 2, in the Report of the Preparatory Commission.

Thirty-third plenary meeting, 14 February 1946.