On 24 July 1947, Jean Monnet, Commissioner-General of the French National Planning Board, writes a secret detailed note to Georges Bidault, the French Foreign Minister, concerning the implications of the Marshall Plan for French policy on Germany and on Europe.
On 18 April 1948, Jean Monnet informs French Foreign Minister Georges Bidault of the American view of the Marshall Plan and of the progress in negotiations in which he is involved in the United States on the issue of supplying France with food products originating in the USA.
On 1 May 1950, Jean Monnet sends a lengthy memorandum to Robert Schuman in which he draws the French Foreign Minister’s attention to France’s role in finding a European solution to the German problem.
During a visit to the United States in April 1948, Jean Monnet sends a letter to Robert Schuman in which he confirms the United States’ desire to help with the reconstruction of Western Europe in order to curb Soviet expansion.
On 14 September 1950, as negotiations are held on the Schuman Plan, Jean Monnet sends a telegram to Robert Schuman, French Foreign Minister, in which he describes a change in the attitude of the German delegation, which, fearing that German rearmament will no longer take place within a European framework but in a purely national context, lays down new conditions for the establishment of a common market in coal and steel.
On 14 October 1950, given the slow progress in negotiations on the coal and steel pool, Jean Monnet sends a letter to Robert Schuman, French Foreign Minister, in which he discusses the impact of the question of German rearmament on the current negotiations and outlines the political methods that will enable a positive solution to the German problem to be found.
On 22 December 1950, in anticipation of the implementation of the Schuman Plan, Jean Monnet sends a letter to Robert Schuman, French Foreign Minister, in which he outlines the instructions to be given to the French representatives of the Allied High Commission for the reorganisation of the Ruhr’s coal and steel industries.
On 28 September 1950, Jean Monnet sends a note to Robert Schuman, French Foreign Minister, in which he gives details of a private visit from the Federal Minister for the Economy, Ludwig Erhard, who, while highlighting the implications of the Schuman Plan, emphasises the concern and astonishment of German authorities at Allied policy in Germany.
In this draft memorandum to French Foreign Minister Robert Schuman, Jean Monnet establishes the framework within which he believes West German rearmament should take place and the country should be incorporated in the European defence system.