C. (52) 155
CABINET OFFICE RECORD COPY
13TH MAY, 1952
CABINET
COPY NO.
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COUNCIL OF EUROPE
ASSEMBLY RESOLUTION NO. 21: PROPOSAL FOR
A EUROPE-COMMONWEALTH CONFERENCE
Memorandum by the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs
At the meeting of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe later this month, I may be called upon to state Her Majesty's Government's view on a proposal of the Consultative Assembly (copy in Annex A) for the convocation of a Europe-Commonwealth Conference to discuss the possibility of a closer economic association between Western Europe and the Sterling Area. I accordingly invite my colleagues to consider the points raised by this proposal and to endorse the conclusions in paragraphs 6 and 7 below.
2.
Recommendation No. 21, on "the Aims and Prospects of a European Policy', was passed by the Consultative Assembly in December, 1951. It contains a jumble of proposals on a number of subjects mainly connected with the future organisation and functions of the Council of Europe. As a result of our own suggestions (Cmd. 8516) for the remodelling of the Council, consideration of this recommendation as a whole was deferred when it came before the Committee of Ministers at their last meeting in March, The recommendation may, however, be raised at the next meeting of the Committee, which begins at Deputy level on 16th May. The Ministers themselves meet on 22nd May.
3. Part C at the end of the recommendation revives an earlier proposal for a Europe-Commonwealth Conference and suggests that such a conference "should among other things examine the possibility of setting up an association between free Europe and the Sterling Area". It is possible that this proposal may escape further notice if the recommendation as a whole is shelved. Discussion may, however, be unavoidable.
4.
There has for some time been strong support in the Consultative Assembly for the idea of closer economic association between Western Europe and the Sterling Area. The nature and composition of such an association has never been precisely defined, different exponents emphasising different aspects. It is evident from the annexed memorandum (Annex B), which has been prepared by the Departments principally concerned, that the consequences for the United Kingdom of such an association might be very far-reaching. So far as commercial policy is concerned, it would clearly be impossible for us to reach any conclusion until the review for which we have called (E.A. (52) 9th Meeting) has been carried out. In other respects, the proposed association may well be found to contain the seeds of the disruption of the Commonwealth and the Sterling Area, which are the foundations of our position as a great Power, and to imperil the consolidation of the Atlantic Community to which our efforts are at present directed. Indeed, from the wider political and strategic as well as perhaps from the economic standpoint, the proposed grouping is either too wide or too narrow, and to contemplate such a grouping without North America would not in present conditions be very sensible.
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