Zuckerman Archive: United Nations Panel on Economic and Social Consequences of the Arms Race and Military

Solly Zuckerman played a major role in drafting the Group's report and in strengthening the language used in it. This is reflected in the size of File SZ/UNPO/5, which includes the drafts of the report and Zuckerman's notes made during its preparation.

File SZ/UNPO/1 includes a small album of photographs of members of the Expert Group taken during its programme of meetings in Geneva, August-September 1971.

File SZ/UNPO/2 consists chiefly of the contents of one of Zuckerman's personal files as Chief Scientific Adviser (old file reference Z/76/3), transferred to his office at UEA following his retirement and to which related material already held at UEA was added at that time.

File SZ/UNPO/3 includes lists of members of the Expert Group; photocopied extracts from various publications; Disarmament. Twenty-five years of Effort, by William Epstein, Canadian Institute of International Affairs, 1971; Address to the Board of Governors by Robert S. McNamara, President, World Bank, Copenhagen... September 21, 1970, Washington DC, International Bank for Reconstruction and Development, [1970]; Economic and Social Consequences of Disarmament. Report of the Secretary-General transmitting the Study of his Consultative Group, New York, UN Department of Social and Economic Affairs, 1962; Preliminary report [of the] Herbicide Assessment Commission of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, 30 December 1970. The last is a loose-leaf publication with photographic illustrations dealing with the military use of chemical herbicides in South Vietnam.

In 1970, at its 25th session, the United Nations General Assembly called upon the Secretary-General, U Thant to prepare, with the assistance of qualified consultant experts appointed by him, a report on the social and economic consequences of the arms race and of military expenditures and requested that the report be transmitted to the General Assembly in time to permit its consideration at the twenty-sixth session [foreword by the Secretary-General to Economic and Social Consequences of the Armaments Race and its extremely harmful Effects on World Peace and Security, Report of the Secretary-General to the 26th Session of the UN General Assembly, 22 October 1971].

Solly Zuckerman was appointed to the Expert Group, which was chaired by Mangalem Chacko, a UN Under-Secretary-General. The Group held three sessions, the first in February 1971 in New York and the last in the following August-September in Geneva. Evidence was collected from governments, UN agencies, international organisations such as the Pugwash movement, and other experts in the field. Some oral evidence was taken.

• SZ/UNPO/1 Minutes, 1971
• SZ/UNPO/2 Correspondence, 1971
• SZ/UNPO/3 Documents 1: General, 1962, 1970-71
• SZ/UNPO/4 Documents 2: Replies to Secretary-General's request for information received from governments and non-governmental organisations, etc., 1970-71
• SZ/UNPO/5 Report, 1971 [in 12 sub-files]

Please refer to the fonds-level description for GB 1187 SZ.

BG; DNS

Please refer to the fonds-level description for GB 1187 SZ.