740.5/8–2154
The Secretary of State to Foreign Minister Spaak 1
I have been following with the closest interest the developments at the Brussels Conference, which is so crucial to all our efforts to build strength and unity in Europe. I have noted with particular appreciation your skillful and patient efforts to bring about agreement under the most difficult conditions.
It is my most earnest hope that the Conference will reach agreement [Page 1059] on a formula which all participants can freely accept. However, I also feel that we must be prepared to deal urgently with the serious situation which would arise if, in spite of every effort, the Conference failed to reach agreement. I am sure you will recall our luncheon conversation at Geneva at which we discussed the possibility of a meeting under Article 132 of the EDC Treaty,2 with the US and UK in attendance, along with the ratifying countries. I feel that the failure of the Brussels meeting would be a matter of such grave consequence as to make such a meeting necessary.
If you agree and if in your judgment circumstances at Brussels make it desirable, I for my part would not object to your informing the Ministers at Brussels that you propose calling a meeting immediately to be attended by the Benelux countries, Germany, the US, and the UK. I believe it should be made clear that the purpose of this meeting will be to consider with urgency how best to associate Germany in sovereign equality with the West and to bring about German rearmament. US would be willing to accept an invitation on assumption UK would do likewise.
- The source text was transmitted to Brussels in telegram 194 at 3:45 p.m. on Aug. 21 with instructions to Bruce to deliver it if he thought it would be helpful. Telegram 194 was repeated to London at the same time with the instruction that a copy of the source text be delivered to Churchill together with Dulles’ personal message to the Prime Minister (p. 1060). In telegram 170 from Brussels, Aug. 22, sent also to London, Bruce reported that he had delivered a copy of the source text to Spaak and that he had also delivered a copy of Dulles’ message to Mendès-France (infra) to the French Prime Minister (740.5/8–2254).↩
- For a report on this luncheon, see telegram Dulte 28, Apr. 29, p. 951.↩