840.6362/2–1545: Telegram
The Ambassador in the United Kingdom ( Winant ) to the Secretary of State
[Received February 15—5:43 p.m.]
1624. 1. In regard to the suggestions in Department’s 564, January 24, regarding the proposed European Coal Organization. We are fully in accord with the first three paragraphs concerning functions and with the last two paragraphs of the message, but we wish to raise question regarding paragraphs 2 and 3 on membership and the last sentence of paragraph 4 on functions.
[Page 1420]2. We note the Department’s view that ECO should be a subcommittee of EEC. In these circumstances it is not clear to us why United States, United Kingdom and USSR should participate fully in EEC but only as observers in ECO. In our understanding it is intended that both EEC and ECO should be advisory organizations, and we doubt the advisability of setting up different forms of participation on the part of different groups of countries in an advisory organization.
3. In regard to the suggestion that we should oppose full participation of United Kingdom and the Soviet in ECO we fear that to take such a position might arouse some antagonism.