Foreign Relations of the United States, 1952–1954, Western Europe and Canada, Volume VI, Part 1

840.00/6–952

No. 44
Foreign Minister Stikker to the Secretary of State¹

secret

[The Hague,] June 9, 1952.

Dear Dean: You will have heard, that at the Ministerial Council of the O.E.E.C. which met last Saturday in Paris² after difficult negotiations agreement between all members was reached about the reserve fund of the E.P.U. and the special position of Belgium. Although this agreement does not solve the fundamental problem of Europe’s dollar shortage, it at least enables the O.E.E.C. to carry on its work for another year. Had we not succeeded in reaching this solution the whole system of European cooperation, which is so carefully prepared by the Coal and Steel Community and the European Defense Community would have collapsed. None of the European countries would have been in a position to fulfill its NATO commitments. Therefore I consider this result a major political achievement.

There is still one problem left which may upset the scheme for the settlement of the outstanding Belgian credit.

Under the scheme Belgium will apply to the International Monetary Fund for the mobilisation of a total amount of fifty million dollars on certain conditions.

Belgium needs the support of other member-countries of the Fund.

At the O.E.E.C. meeting in Paris it was decided that the O.E.E.C. countries would give their support to Belgium at the moment this matter comes up for a decision in the Fund. Ambassador Draper who went back to Washington will have given all the information about this problem and I feel sure that my request that you might look personally into this matter is superfluous. Nevertheless as my last act as outgoing Chairman of the O.E.E.C. I venture to do so because I consider the settlement of this matter as of the highest political importance for Europe.

The support of the United States is the decisive factor, and I trust it will be given.³

With kindest regards,

Dirk

1. This message was delivered to the Department of State by a Netherlands Embassy official on June 9; the source text was attached to a memorandum of conversation of that date which briefly noted that the Secretary had received the message.
2. See the telgram, supra.
3. At the Secretary’s Staff Meeting on June 12, Martin reported that Draper had given up trying to utilize the International Monetary Fund to meet Belgian needs because of technical problems and that the utilization of the Export-Import Bank was not feasible either. Martin stated that Draper was still working on the proposal and that he felt the Department of State ought to support Draper’s conclusions. (Secretary’s Memoranda, lot 53 D 444, “June 1952”)