Efforts to be made by Western Europe to put its trade with the East on a normal basis
- Author(s):
- Parliamentary Assembly
- Origin
- (see Doc. 290, Report of the Committee on Economic Questions). This Recommendation was adopted by the Assembly at its 26th Sitting, on 22nd September, 1954
The Assembly,
Determined, to spare no effort to promote the peaceful co-existence of all the nations of the world ;
Believing that the development of East-West trade may contribute to that end ;
Noting with satisfaction the work done within the Economic Commission for Europe with a view to promoting trade relations between East and West ;
Taking into account the action of COCOM ;
Desirous of increasing co-operation between member countries for the purpose of promoting trade with the East ;
With the intention, in particular, to assure that the West is not placed at a disadvantage in trade negotiations with Eastern monopoly concerns ;
Recalling the points of view set out in the Interim Report (Doc. 258) concerning this question,
1. to adopt certain principles :
a the conduct of East-West trade should be considered as part of the general policy of the West towards the Eastern bloc ;
b having regard to the nature of Soviet policy, the political effects of such trade must be taken into account in addition to its economic advantages ;
c subject to the foregoing considerations, Member States should encourage and develop such trade ;
d no such development can take place on a basis satisfactory to the Western Powers unless they co-ordinate the conduct of their policy with regard to it ;
2. to instruct experts to consider how such co-ordination could most practically be implemented, with particular regard to the possibility of establishing a central organisation through which East-West trade would be co-ordinated and which would be open to the membership of all States of the West, whether Members of the Council of Europe or not.
