1955 Commonwealth Prime Ministers' Conference
# 1955 Commonwealth Prime Ministers' Conference

The 1955 Commonwealth Prime Ministers' Conference was the seventh Meeting of the Heads of Government of the Commonwealth of Nations. It was held in the United Kingdom in January 1955 and was hosted by that country's Prime Minister, Sir Winston Churchill.

A sense of international crisis loomed over the conference which occurred during which the First Taiwan Strait Crisis as were other international developments such as the sudden resignation of Soviet Premier Georgy Malenkov and the fall of French prime minister Pierre Mendès France, all of which were discussed. Atomic energy for peaceful purposes, disarmament, and trade and economic development in the Sterling area, and regional defence were also discussed, in particular the defence of South East Asia, the formation of SEATO and in particular the ongoing insurgency in Malaya.

Pakistan informed the meeting that it was to become a republic and the meeting affirmed that Pakistan would be welcome to remain in the Commonwealth.

## Participants

| Nation | Name | Portfolio |
| - | - | - |
| United Kingdom | Sir Winston Churchill | Prime Minister (Chairman) |
| Australia | Robert Menzies | Prime Minister |
| Canada | Louis St. Laurent | Prime Minister |
| Ceylon | Sir John Kotelawala | Prime Minister |
| India | Jawaharlal Nehru | Prime Minister |
| New Zealand | Sidney Holland | Prime Minister |
| Pakistan | Mohammad Ali Bogra | Prime Minister |
| Southern Rhodesia | Sir Godfrey Huggins | Prime Minister |
| South Africa | Charles Robberts Swart | Deputy Prime Minister and Justice Minister |
