Baruch Plan

The Baruch Plan was a proposal for the international control of atomic energy, presented by Bernard Baruch to the United Nations on June 14, 1946. The plan called for a UN authority to survey and control all uranium deposits and ensure atomic research was for peaceful purposes. Once controls were established, the United States would relinquish its nuclear arsenal and scientific information.1

The Soviet Union, represented by Andrey Gromyko, proposed an alternative plan that focused on the immediate prohibition of manufacturing and using atomic weapons, with compliance measures to follow. However, they insisted on retaining the Security Council veto power. Western delegates argued that the Soviet proposal asked the U.S. to give up its monopoly for a mere promise of compliance. The U.S.S.R. and Poland vetoed the Baruch Plan in December 1946, ending the possibility of international control over atomic energy at that time.1