740.5/5–1651
The Secretary of State to the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations ( Connally)1
My Dear Senator Connally: I refer to your letter of January 17, 1951,2 inviting the Department’s comments on S. Con. Res. 4, a resolution requesting the President to call an international conference of North Atlantic Treaty Nations to explore the possibility of federal union.
The resolution deals with a possibility which extends beyond the normal range of relations between this country and other independent nations. The formation of a federal political union between the United States and the other North Atlantic Treaty countries would have the most profound effects, not only in the field of foreign policy, but also upon the structure of our Government and our national economy. Fundamental issues of this kind would seem to require a very broad basis of deliberation and exploration.
The Department considers Congressional examination as an appropriate and practical way of discovering the extent of existing possibilities as well as difficulties. The communication addressed by Senator Gillette on behalf of the sponsors of the resolution to the [Page 18] parliamentary bodies of certain other countries may prove helpful to this end.
The State Department will be happy to consult with the Members of the Congress on aspects of the problem which are within its competence, and to carry out such specific tasks of investigation, within the Department’s responsibilities, as may be requested of it.
The entire process of exploration should, however, be carried out in such a way that the United States is not committed to take official steps toward Atlantic Union unless and until a concrete plan has evolved and it is clear that the principles and implications of federal union are fully understood and accepted. The Department believes that the calling of an official international conference by the President would inevitably imply such a commitment in the eyes of other nations and also of the American people. The Department therefore holds the view that it would be inadvisable for the President to call the federal convention contemplated by the resolution at this time.
The Department has been informed by the Bureau of the Budget that there is no objection to the submission of this report.
Sincerely yours,
- The source text is “Tab 3” to the memorandum by Assistant Secretary of State for European Affairs Perkins to the Secretary of State, May 16. See Document 11. A marginal note indicates that the letter was prepared by Howard C. Johnson of UNA/P on March 21 and cleared with UNA, EUR, and H.↩
- Not found in Department of State files.↩