Conventional Arms

Press, Volume CI, Issue 30007, 17 December 1962, Page 13

Conventional Arms

(N.Z. Press Association—Copyright)

PARIS, Dec. 16 In a communique ending their three-day session, the Foreign, Defence and Finance Ministers of the N.A.T.O. nations agreed with the American view that the defence burden should be more equitable and said members should bring their own national forces up to N.A.T.O. requirements. Drawing on the Cuban experience, the Ministers said greater conventional military strength was needed to give the West the widest possible range of response to any further Soviet thrust While agreeing to bolster the alliance’s conventional armament, the N.A.T.O. Ministers declared their readiness to ease cold war tension once Moscow adopted a similar attitude. The Ministers singled out disarmament as a field where Soviet policy should change if any agreement was to be reached, said the Associated Press. The final communique said the Ministers “agreed that it was necessary to increase the effectiveness of conventional forces.” It continued: “They further agreed that adequate and balanced forces, both nuclear and conventional, were necessary to provide the alliance with the widest possible range of response to whatever threat may be directed against its security.” The Ministers of the 15 member nations also said there should be “closer alignment” between national and NAT O. force goals. This referred to N ATO’s long-standing and still-un-achieved goal of 30 combatready divisions across central Europe Several members, narticularly Britain and France, are behind in their pledges to this shield of con-

ventional strength. The United States Defence Secretary, Mr Robert McNamara, told the N.A.T.O. Council the Americans were carrying an undue part of the defence load, and that the burden should be more equitably borne. Both Mr Rush and Mr McNamara criticised the European allies for not keeping N.A.T.O.'s conventional forces at “minimum” operational requirements and urged them to contribute more nonnuclear weapons and manpower. They were vigorously supported by the retiring Supreme Allied Commander. General Lauris Norstad. “Short of Everything” Mr McNamara described N.A.T.O. forces, with the exception of the United States and Canada, as being “short of everything” At present force levels, a surprise attack by the massive Communist conventional forces in Eastern Europe could succeed temporarily unless nuclear weapons were used, he said More money would have to be spent to put in more men. more modem equipment, and more replacements for obsolete aircraft. Mr McNamara was quoted by conference sources as saying only the 400.000 American troops in Europe and the Canadian N.A.T.O. brigade were “combat ready.” He estimated N.A.T.O would need about 60 divisions within 30 days of an attack by massed Communist forces. He described the N.A.T.O. planned target of 30 divisions as the minimum requirement in the central European sector. The present strength was 24 divisions.

N.A.T.O had a superior nuclear shield and should forge an even more effective non-nuclear sword, Mr McNamara said.