740.5/8–2651
The French Foreign Minister (Schuman) to the Secretary of State 1
I wish to thank you for your kindness in making known to me on a personal basis, in your letter of August 9, your thoughts on the basic problems which will be the subject of our conversations in Washington in September.
My answer, while it is also of a personal nature, has been delayed by the need to consult the new govt on the manifold and serious problems which will be examined during the coming mtgs and which involve several ministerial depts.
May I say at the outset how happy I am to note the interest you take in the efforts France is making to create a Eur community, as well as the support which your govt is giving to our projects.
Concretely, this policy means the speedy ratifications and putting into effect of the plan for the coal and steel pool, now before the six interested Parliaments, and agreement on the treaty for the organization of a Eur def community, which we must complete in the shortest possible time. We will thus be involved in the preparation of a real polit community among the free states of West Eur, incl West Ger.
These initiatives have been inspired by one controlling idea, to which my govt remains firmly attached: To integrate West Ger on a basis of equality into a Eur community, which is itself included, as you have said, “within a developing Atlantic community”; thus to be able to abandon a system of control guaranteed by force, which—as our experience after the first world war proved—would not constitute a satis and lasting solution; but at the same time to avoid the risk, so serious for peace, and for the Gers themselves, of rebuilding a nationalist [Page 1189] Ger which might be tempted to play the role of arbiter between East and West.
It is with this perspective, I believe, that you and Morrison and I should approach the examination of the Ger problem.
I need not dwell on the fact that France earnestly hopes that Great Britain can participate in these arrangements or be associated with them in a manner compatible with her interests. If, for reasons which are peculiar to her case and of which she is the sole judge, Great Britain could not agree to becoming an integral part of the Eur community, we would regret it, while resting assured that, in conformity with the gen objective of our common policy, she would bend every effort to facilitate our action and would cooperate closely with the US and the Eur community within the Atlantic framework as thus reinforced.
The policy of Eur union implies for all participants, and for France in particular, important sacrifices, a fundamental modification of traditional systems which have been in existence for centuries, and the surrender of sovereignty in favor of supra-national auths. This is a contribution which we feel we are making not only in our own interest but in that of the whole Atlantic community. If this Fr initiative makes possible the integration of Ger into West Eur, this is of benefit to all peaceful and democratic countries.
An all too recent past has taught us that Ger is likely to evolve in rapid and unpredictable ways. In our own interest and in that of the Gers themselves, we must secure the Atlantic community against such possible developments. If we want the integration of Ger into a solidly organized Eur to be and to remain an effective guarantee, during our forthcoming talks we will have to provide for the necessary safeguards. On the other hand, the Eur in which we wish to include Ger will not come into existence overnight. Its formation will require a certain time, a factor which we will have to reckon with.
I am happy to note our agreement with respect to the fundamental principles on which the new regime in Ger must rest. I feel that after a preliminary mtg of experts at the governmental level, we will be able to reach a speedy decision on all the essential points, taking as a basis the report of the HICOM and the recommendations of the London Working Group. I feel as you do that we will not have enough time to study these documents in detail and that our task will be above all to agree on general directives that will put our reps in a position to continue and complete their work. But it must be clearly understood that the new contractual status will not be put into effect before the treaty for the organization of the Eur def community is signed and ratified by the Parliaments, in particular by the Ger Parliament. You [Page 1190] will recall in this connection that we have felt that the international auth for the Ruhr could not be abolished before the entry into force of the coal-steel plan.
With regard to a Ger contribution to the common def, I understand perfectly your concern to have us get on quickly to the stage of implementation. You are justifiably desirous therefore of not awaiting the definitive establishment of all the admin and polit arrangements for the Eur force before adopting a certain number of measures in preparation of the organization of def in Ger. I am in agreement with you provided that this does not mean the beginning of implementation and provided that these measures do not include recruiting soldiers in Ger. It is absolutely indispensable in my view that the first man recruited in Ger be able to put on a Eur uniform, just as it is indispensable that the forces furnished by all the participants become Eur as soon as the community is established. If an embryo of a Ger army exists for a single moment, the whole idea underlying the Eur def community runs the risk of a fatal setback. We must therefore examine with the greatest care the nature of the preparatory measures which might be both necessary for and compatible with the realization of our project. Furthermore, I can assure you that with the help of SHAPE we will do everything within our power to draw up this treaty and get it functioning in the shortest possible time. Our target is to have an agreed text by the end of October. You will recall that as soon as the treaty is ratified the institutions it provides for will be established. Recruitment can then begin in Ger, even if the Eur organizations only start functioning gradually as for the admission of the Ger FedRep to NATO, I consider it most inopportune to raise the question under present circumstances. Our entire Eur policy and especially the integration of Ger forces would be compromised by the prospect of direct Ger accession to the Atlantic community. I consider it my duty to point this out to you at this time. At a later date and when the Eur community, econ, mil and polit, has been established, we shall be called upon to examine how this community can be adapted to other international organizations.
These are, my dear Mr. Acheson, the principal problems, all so significant for the future of our countries, which I have thought best to take up in this letter. We shall certainly have the occasion to discuss them at length in Washington and then in Ottawa and Rome. I wonder, however, if the timetable set can be adhered to in view of the importance of these questions added to others. We can talk further about this in the course of our forthcoming meeting.
PS: I am sending a copy of this letter to Mr. Morrison.
- This text, a translation prepared in Embassy Paris, was transmitted to Washington in telegram 1224 from Paris, August 26 (740.5/8–2651). The telegram was repeated to London for Gilford and Spofford and to Frankfurt for McCloy.↩