850.33/10–3154: Telegram
No. 228
The Deputy United States Representative
to the European Coal and Steel Community (Tomlinson) to
the Department of State1
secret
Luxembourg, October 31, 1954—1
a.m.
39. From Bruce mission. Reference Edcol 36.2
- 1.
- Spierenburg and Daum, members of High Authority, met last week with Mendes-France and Ulver to discuss proposed agreement on association between UK and coal and steel community. Mendes was sharply critical of agreement, stressing that no concrete UK concessions on prices and tariffs had been obtained and that institutional arrangement proposed might prejudice French efforts to use future negotiations under Paris agreements to obtain greater UK integration with continent.
- 2.
- At meeting of Council of Ministers in Luxembourg, Ulver insisted on postponing even exploratory discussions of proposed agreement. Under pressure from other governments, Ulver agreed to charge coordinating committee of representatives of Ministers of six governments to study draft agreement beginning November 12 to complete report for special council meeting on November 22. High Authority has informed UK representatives of necessity to postpone indefinitely talks scheduled for London in November. [Page 411] Status report will presumably be given to common assembly on November 29.
- 3.
- UK representatives are annoyed with prospect that French will probably insist on changes and are especially irritated with wide publicity given to proposed agreement before report could be make to UK Parliament. Monnet is in no hurry to reach agreement and will not press for approval by governments if French continue to believe that association as proposed might have adverse effects on negotiations with UK under Western European union.
- 4.
- French representatives have not given indication of final position. According to Ophuls, Soutou agreed with him on Friday that agreement on UK association should be reached soon and said that French proposals for changes would be limited to giving a larger role in association to Council of Ministers and a lesser role to High Authority. On the other hand, Spierenburg points out that remarks by Mendes-France (and apparently inspired articles in French press) suggest that French Government may try to use question of UK association to bring coal and steel community under Council of Western European Union. While two organizations could be easily linked, High Authority representatives are not expected to take any initiative in this regard because they suspect French attitude may be motivated by desire to reduce or to eliminate supranational character of coal and steel community by giving control in effect to Ministers representing national governments.
Tomlinson