b) integration of Germany as soon as possible into the comity of Western nations. 
It is clear from recent telegrams from Wahnerheide that the proposed French action 
in the Saar is likely to increase the opposition of the German people to Adenauer’s 
foreign policy as a whole and particularly to his wish to join the Council of Europe, 
to such an extent that the application of the Federal Republic to join the Council of 
Europe as an associate member will not be made in time for consideration by the 
Ministers when they meet next month. 
In this event Adenauer's Government would be seriously discredited in the eyes of 
the German people and the programme of the Western Allies for Germany would 
suffer a serious setback. 
If on the other hand Adenauer obtained only a small majority in the Bundestag for 
his proposal to request admission to the Council of Europe the situation would be 
little better. We consider that in order to show their good faith and willingness to 
abide by the provisions of the Statute of the Council of Europe it is important that 
the application of the Federal Government should be supported by the great 
majority of German public opinion and particularly by the S.P.D. An application 
made in present circumstances would clearly not meet these conditions. 
I suggest therefore that it would be worthwhile to put the problem to the French 
and ask them how they propose that we should bring about Germany’s early entry 
into the Council of Europe in the light of this new situation. Our approach would in 
no sense take the form of representations but would merely be a request for M. 
Schuman’s views on how we should now continue to implement the policy which 
has already been agreed by the three Western Allies. This might best be done by 
calling the French Ambassador to the office and putting the problem to him. 
(E F. Porter} 
365