All members of the Joint Committee were present at the meeting held at 11 a.m. on 12th December, 1953. Their names appear in Appendix I to this letter.
Chairman
M. de Menthon.
Ministers
MM. van Zeeland
Bidault
Hallstein
Benvênuti
Nutting
Représentatives
MM. Brown
van der Goes van Naters
Kapani
Luetkens
Montini
Wistrand
In its message to the Assembly in May last, the Committee of Ministers declared itself iu full agreement with the Assembly on its definition of the rôle that should be played by the Council of Europe.
"The Council of Europe", said M. van Zeeland, when presenting the message, "must constitute the general framework of European policy and European action."
Though such a formula does not appear in the Statute of the Council of Europe, it may be allowed that it is implicit in Article 1 defining the aims of this Organisation.
It was appropriate that the Parliamentary Assembly of the six member countries of the Coal and Steel Community, which had been given the task of preparing a draft Treaty for a Political Community, should propose such a definition of the rôle of tho Council of Europe.
In the preamble of the Protocol to the Treaty concerning liaison with the Council of Europe, the Ad Hoc Assembly stated its conviction that the Council must become the framework for general European policy. The Consultative Assembly and the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe gave their assent to this formula.
In the course of its recent Session, tho Assembly seems to me, in its consultative capacity, to have justified this definition.
I.
The Council of Europe would appear to be the organisation best qualified to bring about the co-ordination of the foreign * policies of Member States, insofar as this is considered desirable and possible at tho present time.
The subject of one of the most important Assembly debates was that of "defining the policy of the Council of Europe in the light of recent developments in the international situation".
It was not lightly that the Assembly undertook so grave a debate, since it was always possible that public discussion might hamper the action of statesmen entrusted with the task of important international negotiations, and that widely divergent positions might be assumed, with the result that Europe would seem divided on certain essential points.
Experience has shown that such fears were unfounded, and it became particularly clear that co-ordination of the foreign policies of Member States could be attained with comparative ease. The Resolution adopted at the conclusion of the debate revealed a sufficient degree of unanimity and of precision to give increased authority to European Min- , istres who are taking part in international negotiations at the highest level.
Among other things, the Resolution calls for the convening at the earliest possible date of à four-Power Conference. The chief items on its Agenda would be the Austrian and German questions, ;| which should be considered separately. The primary aim of the Conference should be the conclusion of a | Treaty ensuring the political and economic independence of Austria and of a Peace Treaty with the Government of a united Germany, freely elected over the whole territory, whose duty it would be freely to establish the final position of Germany in Europe. The Assembly considered that Russia should be offered a mutual security pact. within the framework of the United Nations, to which the r parties i would be the U.S.S.R., the United States of America, the United Kingdom, the countries adhering to the European Political Community, and, in the long ' run, other States.
The Assembly held that the hope of a favourable outcome to the four-Power Conference should not be allowed Jx> slow down Europe's efforts to achieve collective security, with the participation j of Western Germany, nor the negotiations for the setting up of a European political authority with limited functions but real powers such as might • ensure the democratic control of existing or future Specialised Authorities.
To this intent, the Assembly urged the United Kingdom and the other Members of the ; Council of Europe to enter into the closest possible degree of association with such institutions.
In attempting to -define a common policy for Member States, the Assembly cherished the hope ; that the Committee of Ministers would "avail itself of the result obtained from its proceedings for the ; purpose of laying down a joint policy for Member States of the Council,, thus lending them greater i weight in international negotiations.
II.
The definition, beforehand, of a guiding ; policy is implicit in any new idea for closer unity j between European countries in any field whatsoever. ; Failing this, any action would soon be brought to' a
I If the Council of Europe is to bè the framework for European action it.'is there, in the j light of the. work carried out by the Committee -of Ministers and its experts, by the Assembly and its committees, that such a guiding policy should be defined.
It may, of course, possibly emerge from this study that A particular idea which at first appears promising is in fact impracticable. And it may perhaps ho considered preferable to entrust the implementation of sucl. plan to some organisation other than the Couucil or Europe, or that some "now. macliinery should be set up. The Council of Europe cannot, however, a priori remain aloof from any initiative directed towards the unification of Europe.
The Council of Europe must continue to play its part, even though new organisations are set up; and it is within its general framework for European policy that the co-ordination and harmonisation of all new bodies must ho ensured.
That is why the question of liaison between the Communities of the Six and the Council of Europe is of paramount importance and lias been one of the chief concerns of the Assembly.
In March, 1952, Mr. Eden submitted certain proposals which wore given long and careful consideration by the Assembly. The principlo underlying these proposals was the creation of an organic form of liaison between the restricted Communities and the Council of Europe.
In an attempt to apply these proposals to the European Coal and Steel Community, tho Assembly proposed that the members of the Common Assembly should, as far as possible, be the same as those of the Council of Europe ; that tho High Autority should, subject to certain conditions, bo authorised to take part in meetings of tho Committeo of Ministers of the Council of Europe ; that tho work of the two Assemblies on matters of common interest should bo closely co-ordinated ; that a joint Secretariat should bo established for the two Assemblies; and that the seat of the Common Assembly should bo tho same as that of tho Council of Europe.
These proposals have only partially been earned out. Half the Representatives to the Assembly of tho Community are also Representatives to tho Assembly of the Council. The first annual Report of the High Authority was submitted to the Committee of Ministers and the Assembly of the Council of Europe in January. It was discussed at a special joint meeting between tho Assembly of the Council and tho Assembly of the Community, which was also attended by members of the High Authority who spoke and answered questions. Tho Common Assembly lias held its sessions at the seat of the Council of Europe and made use of certain technical services of the Secretariat. The President and other members of tlio High Authority have attended meetings of the Committee on Economic Questions, of tho Assembly of the Council in order to explain and discuss the policy of the High Authority. Lastly, the High Authority recently accepted a similar proposal to the effect that one of its members should attend a meeting of the Committee on Social Questions of the Assembly of the Council in order to explain the social policy of-the High Authority.
These measures,-while no.doubt being of great interest to States outside the Community, to the Council as a whole and to the Community itself, cannot in themselves suffice to create the organic liaison between the Council of Europe and E.C.S.C, recommended in the Eden proposals. E.C.S.C. has made no use of the machinery provided by the Council of Europe — which is all ready to he put into operation — and the complete separation of the Secretariats of the ..two Assemblies, has shattered all hopes of creating, in the interests.of thrift and efficiency, one body of European officials responsible for administering the parliamentary organs of all European institutions.
Following the presentation of the last Report of the High Authority, the^Assembly adopted a Resolution (No. 31) of which certain paragraphs contain new suggestions for establishing a form of liaison and closer association between the Coal arid SteeL Community and the Council of Europe. So far no reply has been received to this Resolution, which was transmitted to . the High- Authority last June, and no action has been taken on its proposals.
The question of organic liaison between the Council and the future Political Community is of .even greater importance, since certain countries have made the establishment of this liaison an essential condition for the ratification of the Treaty.
Among other things, the Assembly proposed that the members of the European Senate provided for in the Treaty instituting the Political Community should be ex officio members, of the Assembly of the Council of Europe. The European Senate would thus form an organic part of the Consultative Assembly, and in taking their decisions the members of either body would be fully acquainted with the views of the other. This idea is embodied in the initial Protocol on relations with the Council of Europe drafted by the Ad Hoe Assembly and would serve to provide the essential liaison between the national Parliaments, the European Senate, the Council of Europe and the Political Community.
After the Rome Conference I reminded the Committee of Ministers of the importance to" the cause of European unity of the various forms of liaison and association proposed, and called the attention of the Foreign Ministers of the Six to the need for finding a satisfactory solution
At the Hague Conference, these Ministers heard Lord Layton who had agreed to deputize for me and who explained verbally the importance attached by the Assembly to this aspect of the problems raised by the Plan for a Political Community.
III.
If the Council of Europe is to serve as the general framework of European policy, then, clearly, it is within this organisation that attempts should be made to solve the difference arising between two or more of its Members which cannot be resolved by direct negotiation.
For this reason the Assembly felt it could not afford to ignore a problem which constitutes one of the biggest obstacles to European unity — that of the Saar.
It therefore expressed the wish that a direct agreement should be negotiated as quickly as possible between the two parties concerned.
It also suggested that the Chairman of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe should, with the consent of France, Germany and the Saar, convene a Conference at the beginning of 1954 to study the possibility of providing a guarantee for such agreements as might be concluded in the course of the Franco-German negotiations and to endeavour to solve any other outstanding problems.
It proposed that, in addition to the representatives of the Consultative Assembly and the Secretariat-General who would be attending the Conference in a consultative capacity, invitations should be extended to the countries which decided in Luxembourg on 10th September, 1952 to establish a political Community, and to the Saar, the United Kingdom, the United States of America and tho European Community.
Lastly, the Assembly recommended that the Conference should base its deliberations on any conclusions submitted to it after tho Franco-German negotiations, together with such proposals as might bo advanced by the Consultative Assembly.
IV.
In the economic field, too, the Assembly has tried to play its appointed part in the tasks assigned to the Council of Europe.
May I here remind you of its role in the adoption of what has been called functional, or sector by sector, integration. The studies and negotiations undertaken by the governmental experts in the sphere of agricultural markets, the co-ordination of European airlines, the protection of industrial property, and the establisment of a Low Tariff Club are all more or less directly attributable to our deliberations. There is always the danger, however, that these efforts. at integration may remain completely unco-ordinated and merely lead to what one Member of the Consultative Assembly, Sir Robert Boothby, humorously described as "a nightmare of initials". It would be particularly regrettable, were certain minor differences in. geographical composition between the various organisations concerned to hinder that concerted political effort and unified parliamentary control on which their whole success depends.
As you know, the Strasbourg Plan is now being considered, by O.È.E.C. experts, who will (forward the results of their studies to the Committee of Ministers for a final decision. I should like to, take . this opportunity of. reminding you of the importance' attached by the Assembly to, this 'Plan. Rather than from studies of past achievements. and difficulties the Assembly hopes that it will be from joint action that detailed plans for practical action will emerge. The Assembly is well aware of the difficulties of such an undertaking, but considers that this constitutes a whole field of European co-operation which has hitherto not received the attention it deserves and that an action of this kind would be of equal benefit to the European countries and the overseas territories with which they have constitutional links.
Allow mé to close this brief survey of the economic activities of our Assembly with a general observation. Speaking as a politician to politicians, I feel that the growing complexity of these economic décisions makes it increasingly necessary not only to call on the services of experts but also to ensure a safegard in the form of an enlightened public opinion.
From our debates on economic questions in Strasbourg it is possible to discern a general Une of European economic.policy. Henceforth, therefore, the Assembly intends to hold each year a widely-ranging debate on economic policy similar to that which it has held, and intends to .hold regularly in future, on the policy of the Council of Europe in the light of international events. In this way it hopes, in this field also, to be able to give the responsible politicians the benefit of publie support.
V.
The Consultative Assembly, I must say, is, at times, under the impression that there is a lack of coordination between its own work and that of the Corarnittee of Ministers.. This is why,it greeted with such favour the idea of a common programme of work for the Assembly and the Committee of Ministers. In his message of May last, M. van Zeeland stated :
"We believe'that it is important to establish a well-defined programme of work for the Council, not only in order that it may effectively further the causo of European unity, but also that the people 6f Europe may understand more clearly the role which the Council should play. We have, therefore,-recommended our Governments to consider immediately what should be the substance of such a programme and by what methods it could best be implemented. And we have instructed our Deputies to consider the question further and report to us without delay."
On the initiative of some Governments a number of problems have since been brought forward which, although limited in scope, wero certainly worthy of being submitted to the Consultative Assembly for consideration.
Such a procedure may, nevertheless, involvo certain dangers, of dispersion and fragmentation. Tho fact of having international implications does not necessarily imply that any given problem is of major interest to tho Council of Europe. We still suffor today, as in tho past, from the excessive number of questions raised, which clutter up tho agonda of tho Assembly.
What is important is that our Assembly should have placed before it all problems with a European bearing, particularly in tho fundamental fields of policy and economics.
Under these circumstances, is it surprising, as happened in tho case of the Conferences on Agriculture and on Transport, to find action being taken and followed up outsido the framework of our institutions ?
The presence of observers and an exchango of documents are gestures of courtesy which, clearly, cannot bo regarded as providing sufficient assurances that the Council of Europe will (fulfil tho rôle which all Governments aro agreed it should fulfil.
Does this not provide striking proof that there is still no adequate understanding of our rôle, not only by public opinion but also in certain Government quarters ?
We are here concerned with the desire for close co-operation between the various organs of the Council, a co-operation which is the very foundation of the existence and the work of our Joint Committee.
If there is still too wide gap between our wishes and. their fulfilment, we feel sure that closer co-operation between our Assembly and, the, Committee of Ministers cannot but help to reduce it.
We are determined to restore all its powers of action to this Council Europe of ours, which has raised so many hopes and has also been the source of so many disappointments, but which unhappily, has up to now fallen short of its full capacities.. We feel quite sure that you share our concern.