ABSTRACT
The problem of international disarmament was one of the most complicated issues left unresolved by the Treaty of Versailles in 1919. Arguably, it is the least researched problem of major significance in twentieth-century international history. With one or two exceptions, notably Maurice Vaïsse, historians have been reluctant to tackle the subject. Considering that the powers represented at Geneva were discussing the momentous question of the distribution of world power and the realignment of the status quo of 1919, it is perhaps surprising that only a modicum of studies have as yet been published.1 This essay constitutes one of a series of my contributions: I hope not only to throw further light on the disarmament problem but also to explain the importance of the Geneva Disarmament Conference in the shift of international power relationships in the early 1930s.
