number 1 - Centre d'études et de recherches européennes Robert ...

The Western European Union Armaments Pool 63
Power Geneva conference in July had shown that the scope for negotiation with
Russia was very slight, no obstacles stood in the way of cooperation rapidly unfolding
within the comprehensive context established at the Messina meeting of the
Six.
Conclusions
The history of the aborted project for an Armaments Pool reveals forces and interests
moving behind the diplomatic scene of the European integration process.
Indeed, at first sight, those who are familiar with the story of the European Defence
Community will find it difficult to escape feelings of déjà vu. Deeper analysis,
however, makes it clear that such forces, interests and reasoning belong to a successive
phase of West European history.
After the London conference in October 1954 had left no doubt that France
could not overcome the general opposition to a move towards supranational control
over armaments production in Western Europe, the armaments agency played a
dual role in French policy. Initially and until March 1955 the French leaders kept it
on the agenda for domestic consumption. Hereby they stuck to extremist positions
that were clearly unacceptable for their partners, putting forward supranationalism
as the extreme guarantee against the German "threat" and involving renowned
European activists such as Lapie. On the international plane, however, the plan and
the Paris negotiations helped foster the move towards de facto integration of
French and German armaments production which it had not been possible to
impose by treaty. When Mendès France visited Adenauer at Baden-Baden in early
January, on the eve of the ad hoc conference, he readily conceded that what really
mattered was not the agency itself but rather economic cooperation the case for
which should be stressed.
By the time the WEU came into life the spectre of a sudden, massive and
uncontrolled shift of Germany's industrial capacity towards armaments production
had become a receding nightmare in Paris. Ironically, in a few weeks' time, the
French were to start showing a measure of impatience at Germany's reluctance to
embark upon armaments production.
Unsurprisingly all the West European countries, strongly backed by Washington
and seconded by London, resisted what they considered to be a naked French
attempt to secure a privileged position in armaments production through diplomatic
means or technical devices. Germany successfully fought her battle for equality.
Britain defended not just her insularity but above all her commercial interests while
Italy and the Benelux escaped being overwhelmed by the Franco-German initiative.
The match was simply postponed.
Elena Calandri