HE SUGGESTED DETAILED TEXTUAL AMENDMENTS TO MEET THESE POINTS. IF
THESE WERE ACCEPTED THEN THE REGULATION COULD BE ADOPTED WITH FRANCE
ABSTAINING.
4. IN THE SUBSEQUENT TEXTUAL DISCUSSION IT WAS CLEAR THAT ALL
DELEGATIONS COULD ACCEPT THE PRINCIPLE OF THE CHANGES THAT FRANCE
WAS MAKING. I SAID THAT WE SUPPORTED FRANCE'S VIEW OF THE MATTER.
CALAMIA UNDERLINED THE SIGNIFICANCE OF THE REFERENCE TO ARTICLE 31
PROCEDURES. THIS SUPERSEDED THE PREVIOUS APPROACH ADOPTED BY THE
COUNCIL WHEREBY AN INFORMAL SEARCH FOR GENERALLY ACCEPTABLE INTERNAL
STANDARDS WOULD TAKE PLACE, AND IN THE NATURE OF ARTICLE 31 MIGHT
WELL TAKE LONGER. THE COMMISSION EXPLICITLY ACCEPTED THIS CHANGE OF
APPROACH.
5.
I SAID THAT ONCE THE REGULATION WAS ADOPTED THERE WOULD BE A
GREAT DEAL OF DETAILED WORK ON IMPLEMENTATION TO BE DONE VERY
QUICKLY. COULD THE COMMISSION GIVE AN EXPLICIT ASSURANCE THAT THE
AD HOC GROUP ESTABLISHED UNDER ARTICLE 6 WOULD BE CONVENED AS EARLY
AS POSSIBLE? BESELER (COMMISSION) GAVE SUCH AN ASSURANCE. THE
GROUP WOULD MEET ON MONDAY (THIS WAS LATER CONFIRMED). IT WOULD BE USEFUL TO HAVE EARLY INFORMATION AS TO WHO WOULD REPRESENT THE
MEMBER STATES.
6. THE REAL DRAMA OF THE DAY, HOWEVER, WAS PROVIDED BY GREECE. IN THE MORNING SESSION LYMBEROPOULOS MADE IT CLEAR THAT HE STILL DID NOT HAVE AUTHORITY TO MOVE FROM THE DEMAND THAT THE UPPER LEVEL BE
RAISED TO 1,000 BQ/KG. WHEN IT BECAME CLEAR THAT HE WAS ISOLATED, AND THE PRESIDENCY AND OTHER DELEGATIONS HAD REMINDED HIM OF THE SERIOUSNESS OF A FAILURE TO AGREE AND OF THE OTHER OPTIONS OPEN TO HIM, SUCH AS A UNILATERAL STATEMENT FOR THE MINUTES, HE AGREED TO REFER BACK FOR FURTHER INSTRUCTION. COREPER RECONVENED AFTER LUNCH TO LEARN THAT THIS CONSULTATION HAD BROUGHT NO CHANGE. LYMBEROPOULOS SAID THAT SHEEP AND GOATS MILK IN GREECE WERE SHOWING READINGS OF 900 BQ/KG. ADOPTION OF THE LEVELS IN THE REGULATION WOULD LEAD TO A DOMESTIC DEMAND FOR THEM TO BE OBSERVED DOMESTICALLY AS WELL AND THIS MILK WOULD THEREFORE HAVE TO BE DESTROYED. SOME OFFER OF COMMUNITY ASSISTANCE WOULD HELP TO SOLVE THE PROBLEM. HIS FELLOW AMBASSADORS WERE PREDICTABLY UNRESPONSIVE TO THIS SUGGESTION. THERE WERE THEN ATTEMPTS TO HAVE THE MATTER DISCUSSED BY THE COUNCIL OF HEALTH MINISTERS WHICH WAS SITTING IN THE NEXT ROOM, BUT THE GREEKS WERE UNABLE TO GET THE NECESSARY NEGOTIATING AUTHORITY FOR THEIR MINISTER. RUTTEN SUGGESTED THAT EVERYONE RESIGN THEMSELVES TO
AN EMERGENCY FOREIGN AFFAIRS COUNCIL ON 30 MAY.
2 CONFIDENTIAL
/4.