General policy of the Council of Europe
- Author(s):
- Parliamentary Assembly
- Origin
- Assembly Debate on 26th and 27th September 1966 (9th, 10th and 11th Sittings) (see Doc. 2116, report of the Political Committee). Text adopted by the Assembly on 28th September 1966 (12th Sitting).
The Assembly,
1. Noting that, in spite of the strains imposed on East-West relations by developments in the Far East, there are encouraging signs of a growing interest among Eastern European nations in improving relations with the West through both bilateral and multilateral contacts ;
2. Bearing in mind that the member States of the Council of Europe, whether they are Members of the United Nations or not, are committed in their regional cooperation to observe the principles of the United Nations Charter and to translate them into practical policies ;
3. Recognising that a pre-condition of lasting peace in Europe is the achievement of a detente between the countries of Western Europe and those of Eastern Europe ;
4. Accepting that a detente will require effective guarantees undertaken collectively both by Eastern and Western European States to remove causes of fear and suspicion as between groups of nations living under fundamentally different political systems ;
5. Realising that this will involve the reappraisal of policies hitherto considered indispensable for reasons of security ;
6. Bearing in mind that the question of German reunification is inseparable from the general problems of detente ;
7. Believing that the policy recommended in
Recommendation 459, especially in paragraph (c), will provide an effective starting point for a policy of detente ;
8. Reaffirming its view that the political strength of Western Europe is dependent on member States' ability to achieve the unity which is a fundamental aim of the Statute ;
9. Noting with satisfaction that despite all difficulties important developments in public opinion are taking place in the United Kingdom and other countries in favour of reopening negotiations for an enlargement of the membership of the European Community,
10. Declares that it must be the policy of the Council of Europe :
a to encourage and promote all common measures tending to create confidence, particularly among the countries of Eastern Europe, in the will of our organisation to establish and maintain political conditions in Western Europe which can serve as a durable basis for a system of European peace and security ;
b to promote the understanding of this policy in Eastern Europe through first, bilateral and, subsequently, multilateral contacts ;
c to endeavour to eliminate rivalry between Western and Eastern Europe in their policies of technical co-operation with developing countries and to consider ways and means of giving effect to this ;
d to strengthen the position of Western Europe as a factor for peace and security by promoting European unity through an early extension of the system of the European Communities to the United Kingdom and other member States wishing to join the Communities as full Members or associated Members, and
e to spare no effort to analyse existing tensions between member States, which obstruct the policy of continued integration with a view to formulating proposals to eliminate the causes of such tensions ;
11. Instructs its Political Committee to continue its study of ways and means of promoting a policy of detente and to report thereon to the next part-Session.
