740.00119 Council/10–2245: Telegram
The Chargé in the United Kingdom (Gallman) to the Secretary of State
[Received 7:30 p.m.]
11056. Delsec 133 from Dunn. In accordance with his promise Mr. Couve de Murville last Friday39 gave me an account of conversations he has been having during last week with the British Foreign Office on the subject of the French proposal for the Rhineland and the Ruhr. He gave me for our confidential information a copy of an outline in general terms of the French proposal, a copy of which Reinstein40 took with him for the Dept when he left London last Saturday.41 De Murville said that the British and French officials discussing the subject had divided into two groups, one for economic studies, the other for political aspects of the subjects; that these two groups would continue their separate studies during the present week and that there would be a general meeting of the combined groups on Friday, Oct 26. He said that I would be informed of the results of this general meeting at the end of this week. [Dunn.]
- October 19.↩
- Jacques J. Reinstein, Associate Chief, Division of Financial Affairs, who had been serving as economic adviser at the London meeting of the Council of Foreign Ministers.↩
- A copy of the paper under reference is in Department files under cover of a memorandum by Mr. Reinstein, dated Washington, November 5 (740.00119 Control (Germany)/11–545). A number of other papers emanating from the Franco-British discussions are also in the files. A series of memoranda are filed under a transmittal memorandum of November 8, from H. Freeman Matthews, Director of the Office of European Affairs to Benjamin V. Cohen, Counselor of the Department (740.00119 Control (Germany)/11–845). There is also a copy of a “Report drawn up as a result of the Franco-British conversations which took place in London from October 12th-26th.” This nine-page report whose origin is not indicated gives a detailed French plan for the separation of the Rhine-Westphalia area from Germany. It stipulated that the region should not only be separated from Germany, but from the jurisdiction of the Control Council as well. The French plan also called for dividing the area into three separate units, each to be dealt with differently. The left bank of the Rhine was to be under permanent military occupation. The Saarland was to become a part of the French customs and currency regime, and the Saar mines were to revert to French ownership. The Ruhr district was to be under permanent international control, and the bulk of the report was devoted to details of the organization of a proposed International Ruhr Commission. (700.00119 Control (Germany)/10–2645)↩