UN EARLY PEACE KEEPING MISSION OF THE UNITED NATIONS.

 

UNSCOB

45 years before the outbreak of the Yugoslav civil war there was a state of agitation or disturbance around the borders of Greece that called for action by the UN.

On October 21, 1947, the General Assembly called upon Albania, Bulgaria and Yugoslavia to provide no aid to guerilla forces within Greece. In addition, it created an 11 member Special Committee to aid the four nations involved in complying with the Assembly’s requests, and to monitor compliance. Two of the appointed nations, Poland and the USSR, refused to participate. UNSCOB functioned until December 7, 1951, when it was dissolved by the General Assembly and replaced on January 23, 1952 by a Balkan Sub-Commission of the standing Peace Observation Commission. In each of its annual reports, UNSCOB had found continuing aid to the guerilla forces in Greece.

 

The following countries sent observers or representatives to the disposal of UNSCOB: Australia, Brazil, China, France, Mexico, Netherlands, Pakistan, USSR, UK  and USA.
Covers from the UNSCOB mission are rare but published in the Gaines Catalogue of UN covers and cancellations.

UNMOG

A less known early mission in connection with the Balkan incidents in 1947-1954 is the United Nations Military Observers in Greece, UNMOG. Their task was to investigate incidents along the Greek borders and to make periodic reports.
 The following countries sent observers to this mission: France, Colombia, Pakistan, Sweden, UK and USA.  Records consist primarily of correspondence, and include many complaints of frontier violations from Albania, Bulgaria, and Greece. Sweden sent 3 military observers (each on one year contract) to UNMOG in Greece from March 1952 to 1 August 1954. I am very proud to show two covers from that mission that I have bought from the deceased’s estate  recently.

 

 

An air mail cover from a wife to a Swedish military observer stationed in Thessalonica,
franked with Scott No. 531 and 520 Greek stamps cancelled 1952-11-11. The postage paid was 2.000 Drachmas.
 The cancel is Tessaloniki Avion but the return address is Salonika

 

 

An air mail cover from a Swedish military observer stationed in Thessalonica,
franked with Scott No. 532 and 513Greek stamps cancelled 1952-11-12. Also here the postage paid is 2.000 Drachmas.
All the stamps are issued in 1950/51 for the recover of the Dodecanese Islands.

 

Who was the military observer Maj. R. Essén or I. Essén?

Mr. Ture Raquel Essén, born 1912-10-12, was captain in the reserve of the Engineering Regiment Ing 2, Göta Ingenjörskår. He was constituted as officer 1936-04-24 and nominated as captain 1944-05-01; he was employed as captain on reserve state 1948-10-01. As UN military observer he got the rank of Major.

In his civil life Mr. Essén was a company manager (managing director) living in Stockholm at Storgatan 29. He was married to Mrs. Inga Karin Essén, born 1918-05-16.

 

Who was Dr. Ivar Lindblad?

Dr. Claes Ivar Emil Lindblad, born 1914-04-27, was a dentist, living on Nybrogatan 28, 3^rd floor, Stockholm in Östermalm, the same part of the town as Storgatan is located.

 

Covers from this early military observer mission are very rare, as there were only one observer from each country together with the chief observer from UK. From December 1953 to 31 July 1954 there were only 3 observers and the head of the mission in service.

 

Sources: Die friedenserhaltenden Operationen der Vereinten Nationen by W.W. Wagener 1984,

The Aleigh Gaines book of UN missions 1996 “United Nations Philately Catalog” R & D Publications, Inc. Nov. 1996