Economic and Social Council

Economic Commission for Asia and the Far East: The seventeenth session of the Economic Commission for Asia and the Far East (ECAFE) was held in New Delhi, India, from March 8 to 22, 1961.1 In addition to delegates from member countries there were observers present from Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Israel, Italy, Poland, Romania, Sweden, Turkey, the United Arab Republic, Yugoslavia, and West Germany, as well as from the United Nations specialized agencies and nineteen nongovernmental organizations. The main topics under consideration at the session were 1) the use of resources released through disarmament, 2) possible adverse effects on Asia of European economic groupings, and 3) the establishment of a regional petroleum institute. The question of fluctuations in commodity prices and the need for increased regional economic cooperation were also discussed. In presenting the report of the session, which was later approved, Mr. Sashichiro Matusui of Japan, the chairman of the drafting committee, noted that the Commission had heard statements by several delegates on the credentials of the delegation of Laos. The delegate of the Soviet Union, in particular, questioned the validity of the credentials of the delegation of King Savang Vatthana and contended that the delegation did not represent the “legal government†of Prince Souvanna Phouma. However, the committee examining the credentials of the Laotian delegation had found them in order.