1. At the Saturday morning meeting of OEEC, Mr. Eden made an extended statement on the Commonwealth Economic Conference touching on most of the points mentioned in the final communique. He then called on us, as agreed before hand, for a statement which was made by Mr. Wilgress. The greater part of our statement was an appropriate paraphrase of paragraphs 4 to 9 of the statement made by the Prime Minister at the beginning of the Commonwealth Conference and reported to you in telegram No. 2 of November 30th from the Canadian delegation.3 We added the following concluding paragraphs:

"The Commonwealth meetings, which lasted for several weeks, were able to move forward towards important and constructive proposals. We have no doubt that, today and in the weeks that lie ahead, discussions in OEEC will move forward in the same way. In this connection, we were glad to find that our fellow members of the Commonwealth recognized fully the importance of the position of the European countries, 'whose cooperation', in the words of the final communique 'is essential'. The communique went on to emphasize that the aims of the Commonwealth proposals are entirely consistent with the close ties existing between the members of the Commonwealth and the members of the OEEC.

"It will not be easy to work our way out of the economic difficulties which surround us and divisions which threaten to separate us. The task will involve us all in serious problems - domestic problems as well as international problems. All concerned, will have to share in the responsibilities. Canada, a North American nation, which has participated fully in the Commonwealth meetings, recognizes, as the OEEC Fourth Report points out, that these responsibilities extend to both sides of the Atlantic.

"The Commonwealth proposals have only just been made known and nothing can be decided here today. Our discussion can only be of a preliminary character; nevertheless, it can be very useful in preparing our future work in OEEC. The Canadian delegation to OEEC look forward to taking part in this work in Paris, just as Canadians have taken part in the work in London, and I thank you, Mr. Chairman, for the positive and constructive guidance you are giving us this morning."