During the period 1946 to 1963, Noël Salter as a European civil servant in various positions, took a particular interest in relations with the Commonwealth Countries and European relations with the Third World. This meant wide contact with the concerns and citizens of many Commonwealth countries with particular emphasis on Africa, and to a lesser extent, Asia.
From 1946 to 1950 Salter was a member of the European Movement, then in 1950 he was appointed to the Secretariat-General of the Council of Europe. He later joined the Western European Union a position he held from 1955 to 1963.