ATLANTIC PACT

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 69, Issue 159, 18 April 1949, Page 3

ATLANTIC PACT

Distribution of Arms

U S. MUST “KEEP VOICE’’

(N.Z.P-A.— -Copyright) WASHINGTON,' April 16. The Secretary of State (Mr Dean Acheson) is understood to have told other Governments who signed the Atlantic Pact that the United States must keep a voice, perhaps the decisive one, on how American arms are to be distributed among those who signed the treaty.

The question was whether the United States‘would divide the arms or simply make them available and let tbe receiving nations decide among themselves on the division. : The'issue was raised by the Brussels Treaty Powers during preliminary treaty talks in .Washington on the Americans proposed arms aid programme, which is estimated to cost at least 1,000,600,000 dollars for the Atlantic area. To the surprise of some American officials, at least five Brussels Treaty Powers suggested that they should present their arms needs to the United States as a group, deciding afterwards among themselves what each would receive out of the total.

Mr Acheson is believed to have made it clear at that time that the American Government could not yield its final authority over the distribution of arms.

Diplomats of the United States and other Governments to-day said that the issue was not a particularly sharp one. They were sure that a satisfactory solution would he reached, probably by having' the United States participate fully in the strategic planning and arms distribution plans of the Brussels Powers.

The officials said that one question which had arisen was whether American arms would enable* the Netherlands Government to strengthen its forces in Indonesia, where the United States disapproved of Dutch policy. The Netherlands Government is understood to. have, assured the State Department thatnt would neither send American arms nor send arms displaced by American aid to its forces in Indonesia. Yet an American official said it must be recognised that, when the Dutch were made* military stronger at home, they would be in a better position to strengthen themselves in Indonesia. They said that tire best hope for the situation was for an eariy settlement of the Indonesian dispute.

Senate to Debate Pact

t Senator Robert Taft, head of the. Republican Senate policy committee, declared to-day that Senate Republicans will force a full discussion on the North Atlantic Pact. The statement was made in reply to an article by the Democratic national; chairman, Senator McGrath, that' the. Republicans,may be planning to use the debate bn the treaty as a “legislative roadblock” against other measures on President Truman’s programme. Senator Taft said “I think that there is a public demand for a full and comprehensive discussion of the pact and all of .the problems which arise out of it, including ' the furnishing of arms to signatory nations. It seems to me that the treaty is far more important as far as the country is concerned than President Truman’s proposed economic control measures. ’