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The Unique Moment. Bidault tried hardest to light a fire. Said he: "This moment is perhaps unique in history. It is the moment to make Europe." Concretely, he proposed "the convocation of a European assembly, chosen by the parliaments of the participating nations . . . to advise on the immediate practical measures to bring about progressively the necessary economic and political union of Europe."
Bevin tossed cold water on this. Spaak wanted to know how the conference could hope to move toward political union when member nations could not even get a small regional customs union to work effectively (as the delegates had learned at the Dutch border).
Then Bevin got around to what was in everybody's mind—Berlin. He read a long statement of the British attitudes towards the Berlin crisis. Most of it recommended firmness. But the kicker came in the closing sentences—which opened the door to negotiations with the Russians.
The unanimous view of The Hague powers was that such negotiations should be resumed as soon as possible, even if talks covered subjects other than Berlin—which the Western powers had at first refused to do. It was recognized as desirable that the blockade should be lifted before the negotiations began.
Bevin was well pleased. He had not wanted to bear the brunt of the responsibility of suggesting to Washington even a partial climbdown. Now the French and Benelux would at least share that responsibility, and might even assume most of it.
Until October. Before they reached this conclusion on Berlin, the delegates reviewed the armed strength of the nations represented at the table. The answer was nothing that would impress the Russians. Luxemburg has an army of 5,000 and no air force. Belgium's army of 55,000 includes only two combat divisions. Three-fourths of the Dutch army and most of its navy and air force are in Indonesia. Less than half the French army is in Europe; its navy and air force are small and antiquated. Britain has only 900,000 men in uniform, over half of them partly trained draftees.
However, The Hague conference brought some hope of progress toward military cooperation. For the first time U.S. and Canadian military experts sat down with military experts of the five Western nations.
The conference, having accomplished little, adjourned, probably until October.
The U.S. showed signs last week that it intended to step up Western Union's pace. In Paris, EGA Administrator Paul Hoffman demanded more economic cooperation between European countries (see NATIONAL AFFAIRS). Headway was being made toward a more or less free currency exchange and there was a hope that by October the 16 Marshall Plan nations would be allocating U.S. aid among themselves, rather than queueing up to get it on an individual basis.
Things were moving—but hardly fast enough.