740.5/11–1853: Despatch
The Counselor of Embassy in Italy (Williamson) to the Department of State
No. 1099
Subject:
- Present Prospects for EDC Ratification in Italy.
The Foreign Office official primarily concerned with EDC questions informed an Embassy officer on November 17 that there was increasing concern within the Foreign Office that Italy might be the last to ratify the EDC. The official said that shortly following the announcement on October 8 of the Anglo-American plan for Trieste,1 the Foreign Office had drawn up a memorandum for Prime Minister Pella regarding the possibilities of ratification by Italy of EDC and indicating that unless some action were taken to commence the process, Italy might well be the last to ratify. The official said that the Foreign Office had received no reply to this memorandum from the Prime Minister, but that it was understood that Pella believed that given the present [Page 852] political situation, it would not be politically possible to submit EDC to Parliament at this time. The present government is endeavoring to stabilize its Parliamentary position and must first of all bring the Trieste question to a successful conclusion. The Foreign Office estimate at the present moment is that if EDC should be brought to a vote in the immediate future, it might fail of passage. The Foreign Office sees no early prospects, therefore, for action by the Government to present EDC to Parliament, at least until the Government has gained more ground on Trieste and has a solid working majority.
On the procedural side, the Foreign Office official said that in one of its early sessions the Council of Ministers of the present Government had approved bringing to Parliament all measures presented to the previous Parliament, including EDC. (As an aside, the Foreign Office official said that only one piece of legislation had been withdrawn and that was the bill ratifying the NATO Status of Forces Agreement.) This means that when the Government decides that the time is ripe to proceed with the EDC ratification, the bill can be submitted to Parliament without delay. The usual procedure would be to present the bill to one Chamber and for that Chamber to refer it to Committee. When action had been completed by one Chamber, the bill would then be considered by the second Chamber under the same procedure. The Foreign Office official believed that by applying the rule of urgency, at least 2 months would be required to complete Parliamentary action.
With respect to political trends, the Foreign Office official said that there were certain currents in Parliament, noticeably amongst the Liberal Party, to insist that the Trieste question should not be allowed to affect or to influence adversely the Atlantic policy of Italy. However, the Foreign Office did not believe that this trend would extend itself to a similar attitude on EDC. With respect to other parties, the Foreign Office had received information that the British socialists had recommended to the PSDI, through PSDI Deputy Treves who recently visited England, that it should support the EDC. The Monarchist attitude continues to be governed by the Trieste question.
Comment: It would appear that the future of EDC in Italy continues to depend on the Trieste situation. While the Foreign Office is fully aware that there may be increasing pressure on Italy to ratify EDC, particularly if the French continue their present favorable trend, no action can be taken by the Government to commence the ratification of EDC until the Government considers that it has a clear field with respect to Trieste.
- Documentation on Trieste is presented in volume viii .↩