Inclusion Of Germany

Greymouth Evening Star, 16 March 1948, Page 5

Inclusion Of Germany

According to Reuter messages from Frankfurt, Western German observers are waiting “with their bags packed,” ready for an official invitation to attend the conference. An invitation to the Germans and to the British, American and French occupation authorities are confidently expected'and the delegates are reported to be already chosen. The Associated Press correspondent reports that the French occupation authorities announced that German representatives from the French zone would take part in the conference.

Reuter's Paris correspondent says it is learned that the re-establishment of- a regular, unhampered flow of goods among European countries and the acceleration of production will be the main points which the Benelux countries will make at the conference. They base their argument on six months’ experience of the working of the agreement on payments, which they reached with France and Italy during the first Marshall Plan conference in Paris last summer. This established a clearing arrangement for the five countries through the Bank of International Settlements in Berne. “Multiplying By Five” A high Belgian official said it was found that the clearing agreement had the effect of “multiplying by five.” For example, if under the Marshall Plan one of the five countries received £250,000 and put it into circulation in the form of goods, this amount when it completed the circuit to the country which had initially used it would have been used five times and financed £1,250,000 -worth Of trade; Benelux officials will urge that this agreement should be extended to become a European clearing house —in fact, the instrument for the application of the Marshall Plan. Not Delegates

In Frankfurt tonight, the United Military Governor, General Clay, said that. Germans from the Anglo-American zone, if the Marshair Plan conference accepted them,

would go as advisers to Paris, but would not take part in the talks. Reuter’s Frankfurt correspondent .says that in the absence of a peace treaty and a recognised German Government, the Germans could be admitted only as experts, not delegates. The diplomatic correspondent of the Daily Telegraph says that the French delegation at the conference, after consultation with Britain, is to suggest that the proposed permanent organisation to supervise economic recovery in Western Europe shall fix each year an annual economic programme based on the national programme of the participating countries.

It will also be proposed that this 16-nation organisation shall undertake to “repudiate all autarchic measures, facilitate trade between themselves, practise close co-opera-tion, and progressively abandon export restrictions between themselves.”

Reuters correspondent in Paris says that it is reliably learned that the draft report to be submitted to the conference says that Europe’s economic situation continues to degenerate because of the progressive exhaustion of the gold and hard currency resources of most European countries, which have often been obliged to make big reductions or even suppress their purchases of raw materials from the Western Hemisphere. As he left London for the conference, the British Foreign Secretary (Mr Ernest Bevin) said: “I am a born optimist.” Britain And Italy In a leading article on the Paris conference, the Daily Express casts doubt on the wisdom of Britain allying her self with Italy, which “may be Communist after the elections in April,” and with France, which “stands under the shadow of an authoritarian regime and, it may be, civil war.” The Daily Express concludes: Mr Bevin is in Paris today. He will be

in Brussels on Wednesday. Mr Bevin should visit the Empire.” - , Reuter’s Paris correspondent- says there will probably be little, opposition in the Marshall Plan conference to the British-French proposal to bring Eastern Germany into the planning organisation of European recovery. A committee ot oniciols proposes" to tackle practically the whole agenda in two closed sessions tonight, which is taken to indicate that there are no great differences of opinion about Germany oi the principles of continued co-operation. The second plenary session tomorrow will be asked to approve the committee’s conclusions on bbth these points.