Policy of Member States of the Council of Europe on East-West relations
- Author(s):
- Parliamentary Assembly
- Origin
- (seeDocs. 774Docs. 774andDoc. 783, Reports of the Political Committee). This Resolution was adopted by the Assembly at its 35th Sitting, on 17th January 1958
The Assembly,
Having held a general debate on recent developments in the international situation, with particular reference to :
1 the resolution on strengthening European co-operation adopted by the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe on 13th December 1957 ;
2 the declaration and communique issued at the NATO meeting of Heads of Governments on 19th December 1957 ;
3 the overtures for East/West negotiations contained in the various letters, messages and notes of the Soviet Prime Minister;
4 the reply of President Eisenhower to M. Bulganin's letter of 10th December 1957 ;
Welcoming the entry into force on 1st January 1958 of the treaties setting up the Common Market and Euratom, which demonstrate the will of the peoples of the six-Power Communities to form a strong and closely integrated economic unit and thereby a practical lead to the movement for European unity ;
Welcoming also the resolutions of the Council of O.E.E.C. setting up the European Nuclear Energy Agency and declaring their determination to secure the establishment of a free trade area,
Considers that the policy of Member States of the Council of Europe on East/West relations should include the following :
1 The Member States of the Council of Europe should remain loyal to the undertakings they have given to consult among Western partners before taking initiatives on important international political problems.
2 The Western Powers must be ready to enter into negotiations at highest level with the Soviet Union, at the same time rejecting the terms "capitalist and socialist states" as used by the Soviet Union in this context. It is indispensable that any East/West "summit" conference, if it is to be productive, should be well prepared in advance by whatever methods are best calculated to achieve results. There must be a joint effort on the part of the Western Powers to coordinate their policy.
3 The Western Powers should endeavour to get negotiations on controlled disarmament going again, and to this end the Soviet leaders' intentions should be probed. The Assembly believes that the political and military aspects of regional or limited disarmament should be studied by the Western Powers.
4 Free Europe cannot give final recognition to the status quo in Europe, which would mean, among other things, the continued partition of Germany. There can be no lasting settlement with the Soviet Union so long as this problem remains unsolved.
5 The West must be faithful to the principle that all peoples, including the nations of Eastern Europe, have the right to choose their own political regime.
6 It is vitally important to bring the Western Powers and the under-equipped countries of the world closer together on the basis of mutual help, trust and respect. The Western Powers must be prepared to make a much greater effort to raise the standard of living of these countries, without imposing on them any condition which might interfere with their independence.
