107. Telegram From the Department of State to the Embassy in France1
5708. Ref: Paris 6184.2 For the Ambassador. We do not believe any good purpose would be served by your taking initiative with de Gaulle in raising difficult and now unpleasant problem of draft Tripartite Declaration on Germany. If he raises you may wish to refer to the three possible compromises suggested by Ambassador Thompson at the Ambassadorial Group Meeting of April 27 (Deptel 3268 to Bonn, repeated Paris 5579).3 These compromise suggestions, particularly substituting the phrase “of all the peoples concerned” for the words “of all the peoples of Europe,” would seem adequately to protect the French point of view. If the phrase “of all the peoples concerned” were included, we would not insist upon inclusion of the sentence we had suggested and, you may wish to note, the French draft would still include in para three the phrase “on the continent” and in para four a clear reference to the security of “all [Page 261] European states.” You may say to de Gaulle that we were surprised and disappointed by GOF unwillingness accept such minor change in otherwise completely French-drafted text. Nevertheless, we continue to remain hopeful that one of compromise proposals we have suggested can be accepted by France and that we can have Tripartite Declaration on Germany agreed.
It was Amb Alphand’s linking of French unwillingness to consider any amendment to their declaration to de Gaulle’s Feb 4 statement that caused us to take such a firm stand.4
- Source: Department of State, Central Files,POL 32–4 GER. Secret; Limdis. Drafted by McIntyre; cleared in WE, GER, and EUR; and approved by Thompson.↩
- Telegram 6184 from Paris, May 3, instructed Bohlen to raise with de Gaulle the issue of French participation in a declaration on Germany. (Ibid., POL 1 FR–US)↩
- Not printed. (Ibid., POL 32–4 GER)↩
- Reference is to the April 20 meeting of the Ambassadorial Group; see footnote 2, Document 104.↩