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
