Foreign Relations of the United States, 1955–1957, Western European Security and Integration, Volume IV

154. Memorandum of a Conversation, Department of State, Washington, February 10, 1956, 4 p.m.¹

Washington, February 10, 1956, 4 p.m.

PARTICIPANTS

• US
• The Secretary
• CSC
• M. Mayer
• Mr. Murphy
• Mr. Merchant
• Mr. Prochnow
• Mr. Bowie
• Amb. Butterworth
• Mr. Sherwood
• M. Uri
• M. Spaak

SUBJECT

• Call by M. Rene Mayer, President of the High Authority of the Coal Steel Community

M. Mayer opened the conversation by expressing his thanks to the Secretary for the opportunity to visit in this country and to convey his opinions on the operations of the CSC. In particular he expressed his thanks for our efforts to avoid any prohibition of the export of scrap because otherwise the High Authority would have been forced in the past year to declare a state of scarcity in the CSC which would have ended the common market for steel. M. Mayer expressed the hope that State, Commerce, and the Steel Industry could work out an arrangement for the future which would assure the supplying of scrap to the CSC.

M. Mayer mentioned his recent conversation with M. Pineau whom he hoped to see again after the meeting of the Foreign Ministers in Brussels.² Referring to the need for progress in the creation of a common market and EURATOM, M. Mayer commented “the technical market is always possible if the political will is in favor”. He noted that the Community at one time was a vision but is now behaving as an effective living being, in commerce, tariffs and coal and steel. He said that Great Britain isn’t very anxious to see progress but that the High Authority does not think Europe can wait and that the standard of living needs to be raised by the operation of a common market. What is needed in Europe, M. Mayer continued, is a common policy for energy, particularly because the steel industry in Western Europe is expanding ahead of coal production. The relation of power sources including atomic power must be decided by the Governments of Europe working in common.

The Secretary said he was pleased to receive M. Mayer and said that he and the President are strong supporters of the idea of European unity as symbolized by the High Authority which M. Mayer represents. The Secretary noted that it is hard to pursue great conceptions such as the CSC in a working organization, and we are grateful that this conception is working well under the leadership of M. Monnet and M. Mayer. He said that we were happy to have helped in obtaining an EXIM bank loan for the CSC although it was true we have business interests in the United States who dislike to see us loaning at a low interest rate to competitors abroad. But this is a tribute, the Secretary continued, to the intelligent idealism of the United States. The Secretary noted that the appointment of Amb. Butterworth as our representative to the High Authority indicates the importance which we attach to the organization.

Turning to what he termed “practical matters”, the Secretary took up the question of steel scrap. He said the State Department felt that a limitation on the export of scrap was not justified. He pointed out that there had not been any question of prohibition of export but that a limitation on the export of scrap had been asked for by certain interests in this country. The Secretary pointed up his interest in this question by mentioning his personal participation last year in a meeting in the Department of Commerce when it was decided to postpone restrictive action. He said that Mr. Prochnow was dealing with this problem and that more detailed discussions would take place in the next few days.

Turning to another practical matter, the Secretary commented on the British attitude toward the common market. He said it was correct to say the British are not full of enthusiasm for either EURATOM or the common market, but that probably their enthusiasm was less for the common market than for EURATOM. Concerning the common market the principal fear of the British is that the French would accept it only with high tariffs, and the British fear the same lack of result as happened with the EDC. The Secretary said that he and the President during the recent Eden visit had talked as persuasively as they could and made the British realize the vigor of our attitude on these matters. The Secretary commented that we were instructing our Embassies in CSC member countries that the Eden visit communiqué³ should not be interpreted as a U.S. recession from our position on these matters.

The Secretary continued noting that we favor progress for political as well as economic reasons. There is a need to continue to find ways to draw France and Germany together in common institutions. Germany has the choice of looking east to the USSR as well as to the west. In this conflict we must be the magnet of attraction.

The Secretary asked M. Mayer if he envisaged an enlargement of the functions of the CSC—energy, for example. In any move of this sort the impetus must come from Europe but the movement will have the sympathy and support of the U.S.

M. Mayer commented briefly on the achievements of the OEEC and the EPU but added the question of integration is much larger than can be encompassed in these organizations. The real debate is not between the forms of the OEEC and CSC but rather whether to integrate or not. M. Mayer added that the UK need not fear the French position concerning high tariffs because The Netherlands, Belgium and Germany would never accept it. M. Mayer said that whereas the OEEC has opened the way we now need a means of continuing in the same direction without turning back and that each step must be a real and irrevocable one.

The Secretary asked if M. Mayer thought that energy development might take place within the context of the present organization (of the CSC). M. Mayer replied that there could not be two authorities without mutual consultation and that interpenetration would be necessary.

M. Mayer said that as far as a general policy concerning energy development is concerned, he thought it would be necessary for such development to have a common over-all policy. He pointed out that as things now stand coal and oil have different policies in the CSC.

The meeting then concluded at 5:00 p.m.

1. Source: Department of State, RA Files: Lot 58 D 455, Dictate. Confidential. Drafted by Sherwood. This conversation took place in Dulles’ office. An unidentified person made certain minor changes in Sherwood’s draft on the source text. René Mayer was in the United States for a 4-day official visit, February 6–10. Briefing papers for the Mayer visit are ibid., Conference Files: Lot 62 D 181, CF 653A.
2. The Foreign Ministers of the six ECSC countries were scheduled to meet in Brussels, February 11–12, to consider an interim report by the intergovernmental committee.
3. The text of this communiqué, issued on February 1, is printed in Department of State Bulletin, February 13, 1956, pp. 232–234.