850.33/12–154
No. 232
The President of the High Authority of
the European Coal and Steel Community (Monnet) to the
Secretary of State
Dear Foster: I have your letter of October 27, 19541 stating your agreement the the United States Government should have diplomatic arrangements with the High Authority separate from its representation to the European Governments. I feel that I must again stress to you that the High Authority attaches the same importance to having the United States mission to it continue to be separate and distinct from the United States representation to, or participation in, any of the European intergovernmental organizations such as NATO, OEEC, or the proposed WEU. Not only would arrangements for joint representation jeopardize the independence of the High Authority vis-à-vis the six European governments in its direct dealings with the United States on matters of coal and steel, but such arrangements might also embarrass the High Authority in its direct relations with other third governments who participate in these various intergovernmental organizations.
Another important consideration requiring the maintenance of the separate mission is the need to demonstrate that the United States Government continues to appreciate the special supranational character of the institutions of the Coal and Steel Community. As you would expect, the High Authority has had a constant struggle to maintain its authority independent of the national governments. This was recently an issue in working out the form of association between the United Kingdom and the Community. This same issue will certainly arise again many times. If the separate mission established by our agreement of November 1953 were to be given to the United States representatives to NATO, OEEC, or the WEU, the supranational principle, which as you state is so important, would be greatly harmed.
The short-comings of the intergovernmental approach of the proposed Western European Union as compared with the supranational character of the Coal and Steel Community is surprisingly widely recognized in Europe. This development is the best hope, in my view, that after the WEU is ratified, the European nations will turn once again to building Europe through the policy of exercising their sovereignty through common executive institutions responsible [Page 416] to a common parliament and not to the national governments. This is also my purpose. I trust that European governments will again firmly adopt such a policy, but if, on the contrary, the developments of the last few months should lead the European governments back to reliance upon national policies of the past, then I look on the future with serious misgivings.
With best wishes,
Yours sincerely,
- Not found in Department of State files.↩