1079 
Mr. Ponxack. Sir, not being familiar with the total assignment 
that has been given to the Ash Commission, I am not really in a posi- 
tion to judge. 
_Mr. Lennon. There has been some criticism, and it has been on both 
sides, in the last few days, with respect to the administration brand- 
ing the Congress, and the Congress branding the President about 
inaction. ‘ 
If I have ever seen or heard of inaction, I cannot imagine having 
asked a commission to make a study, and then 4 months after they 
have been specifically requested to do something, they come up with 
the idea that, “In 2 or 3 months from now we will begin to commence 
to see how long it will take to start the study.” a 
This is an indication of inaction between the President and his 
Advisory Commission. I don’t see how anybody in the Congress can 
be critical of the President, and the President can be critical of Con- 
gress. Here we have an instance of where the President ought to be 
critical of the Commission which he appointed. 
I cannot imagine anybody being President calling on the Com- 
mission to do a specific job, and 5 or 6 months later they say, “We will 
get to it sometime.” 
I did not mean to interrupt you, but I just wanted you to know 
that we knew that this thing has been delayed now for around 5 
months. If this is the sort of cooperation we get, or the sort of co- 
operation the President gets from his own Commission, I wonder 
what he gets from the other branches of Government. 
Go ahead. I did not mean to interrupt you for so long. 
Mr. Pottack. I will address my remarks today to the Commission 
recommendations on the international legal-political framework for 
the seabeds, which is of main interest to the Department of State. 
The Department has kept in close touch with the Marine Commis- 
sion in the course of their study, and I would like to take this op- 
portunity to compliment its members and staff for the thoroughness 
and diligence of their study of very complex problems. 
After receiving the Commission’s report, we have continued to re- 
view and study it with great interest. We consider the Commission’s 
study of the question of a legal-political framework for the ocean 
floor as constituting a valuable contribution to a better understanding 
of the many factors bearing on the problem. 
The Commission has made thorough analyses and careful recom- 
mendations. The Commission’s report has usefully and_ effectively 
raised important issues and posed major recommendations which 
are receiving very careful study within the U.S. Government, and 
internationally as well, as policies regarding the seabed are developed. 
The range of subjects involved before us is extremely broad. It 
would be impossible to address any of them in detail at this time. 
I will, however, briefly review the history of our international efforts 
and outline our approach to current problems. 
You will recall that after Ambassador Pardo of Malta raised in 
1967 the question of the peaceful uses of the seabed and ocean floor 
beyond the limits of national jurisdiction, the United Nations Gen- 
eral Assembly established an ad hoc committee to look into the matter. 
The United States played a leading role in this committee, intro- 
ducing at its June, 1968, meeting a draft statement of principles con- 
