I attach a copy of an interesting letter of August 2 from Wrong to Heeneyt reporting on a conversation with George Kerman in which Kerman came out in favour of a super-federation combining the United States, the United Kingdom and Canada.

2. Kerman reported that the planning staff of the State Department, with the assistance of some outside advisers from universities, had been carefully examining the long-term policy which should be followed in connection with European and North Atlantic federal union. Kerman has recently been discussing with Jebb and others in London the tentative conclusions of the planning staff. Apparently he believes in a federal union in Europe which would exclude the United Kingdom and which would be devised so that it could be extended eastwards to countries now behind the Iron Curtain whenever the opportunity arose. He expressed doubt though not certainty that the economic problems of the United Kingdom could be settled within the existing framework of sovereign states. Even if it were technically possible, he doubts whether it would be politically possible. This has led him to his belief in the desirability of the federation of the United States, the United Kingdom and Canada. He considers that the North Atlantic Treaty has been a step towards this objective and that another important step which might prove to be not out of the question before very long would be the establishment of complete freedom of movement between the three countries.

3. At the end of his letter, Wrong refers to his despatch on the resolutions now before Congress on the subject of federal union or world government. I attach a copy of this despatch (No. 1793 of August I)† together with a copy of the resolutiont proposing that the President should invite delegates from the countries which originally sponsored the North Atlantic Treaty to meet with delegates of the United States in a federal convention. There is also attached the speecht given by Senator [Estes] Kefauver when he introduced this resolution.

4. The resolution is sponsored by the "Atlantic Union Committee", the President of which is former Justice Roberts. You may recall that in a note which I gave you on April 6t of a conversation which I had that day with Hickerson, Hickerson said that he personally favoured the proposals of Justice Roberts for the immediate formation of a North Atlantic federation. He also went on to say that he was toying with the idea of what he called an "economic union" of the United States, the United Kingdom and Canada. He defined an economic union to mean the free movement of goods and money but not of people.

5. I had previously heard through Arnold Smith that Kerman's planning group had been considering very carefully the possibility of an economic union of these three countries but had not heard that they had gone so far in their thinking as to consider the desirability of a super-federation. Now that we have learned that the planning staff in the State Department has been giving careful examination to such large proposals, I suggest that it would be wise if we were to start turning these ideas over in our own minds. I would suggest for your approval that I might send a copy of Wrong's letter of August 2 for comments to Robertson, Wilgress and Plumptre, MacDermot, Holmes and [G.G.] Crean. I might also get in touch with Arnold Smith since I think he will be able to throw further light on the studies which have been made by Kerman's planning staff.

E[SCOTT] R[EID]