Chapter 2 | Page 56 ‘total freedom of choice and action as to how the rights should be implemented.’44 Four key elements of the obligation can be discerned in this Article: undertaking to take steps; utilising maximum available resources; achieving progressively the full realisation of rights; and employing all appropriate means to achieve these objectives.45 The following discussion addresses these four areas but deviates slightly from this schema, by separately addressing the component of international assistance and co-operation. ‘Undertake to take steps’ A central question in the interpretation of this article is whether ‘to undertake’ amounts to a promise to do or accomplish something by the State. This raises a number of important questions about the nature of the obligation. For example, does the term ‘undertaking’ carry any practical implications? Does the undertaking to take steps imply immediate application and indicate a readily identifiable obligation? The drafting history of the Covenant and the work of the ESCR Committee shed light on these questions. During the preparatory work on the Covenant, there was debate on whether to include ‘to guarantee’ or ‘to take steps’ in the text of this article. There were also proposals to use the terms ‘to ensure’ and ‘to pledge themselves’, neither of which made it into the Covenant text.46 The choice of ‘to take steps’, while not as strong as ‘to guarantee’, still provides for a commitment on the part of the State to actively pursue the objectives necessary for the effective enjoyment of these rights. The more guarded expression ‘to take steps’ indicates a softer commitment than what could be inferred from ‘to 44 Ibid. 45 See for example, Saul, Kinley and Mowbray, above n 7, 136. 46 See, for example, Alston and Quinn, above n 1, 165.