The British Foreign Minister Ernest Bevin heard a BBC report on the Marshall’s Harvard speech shortly after it was given; the next day he contacted French Foreign Minister Georges Bidault and arranged conference in Paris to consider the ideas Marshall had put forth. The key issue was to define what was the nature of the economic problem in Europe, what Europe could do about it, and what was needed from the U.S. Many in Congress were displeased with the various socialist schemes in Europe and dubious about any self-perpetuating U.S. government welfare programs. The Europeans wanted to know what the U.S. required of Europe, and the Americans wanted the potential recipients of aid to list their resources for self-help.
