840.50/12–2344: Telegram
The Ambassador in the United Kingdom ( Winant ) to the Secretary of State
[Received December 23—9:48 a.m.]
11403. In an informal conversation regarding the proposed European Economic Committee Ronald said he believed that such a procedure as that suggested in Embassy’s 11323, December 20 (paragraphs 3, 4 and 5) and 11343, December 21, the substance of which we outlined orally to him, would be acceptable to the UK. He added that UK Ministers as well as officials have expressed themselves in favor of proceeding with discussions on a European Coal Organization without waiting until an EEC is set up. Ronald said he would like to have two other preliminary four-power meetings on the same lines, one to deal with fertilizers and the other with agricultural rehabilitation and reconstruction that go beyond the scope of UNRRA. He thinks that it is even more important to deal promptly with specific subjects such as coal and fertilizers than with the over-all EEC and would favor having all meetings simultaneously or overlapping each other. Subsequently the organizations to deal with the more limited economic subjects would be attached to EEC as subdivisions.