Evening star., 1937-03-21
MONROE DOCTRINE LOSS
HELD NO CAUSE FOR FEAR
Latins Aware That United States Will
Protect Its Interests Against
Europe Under New system.

Of the invasion of Belgium by the Ger
| mans. But Serbia and Belgium we're
both small countries" the writer add
| ed, equally prospective victims Of
aggression, and the only difference was
that one was near and one far" In
other words. it was not a humanitar-
ian complex. but a hard-headed real
ization Of the security and interests
of Great Britain that decided her con-
| duct in both instances.
Exactly the same parallel could be
! applied to the position of the United
States in reference to Latin American
independence. The degree to which
| Britain will support the League of
Nations as guardian of international
peace is just as much determined by
the safety and interests of Britain as
will support the Monroe doctrine is
determined by the safety and inter-
ests of the United States. In both
cases, it is not idealism or even dog
matism but realistic pragmatism,
which lays down the rule or the rules,
one for each emergency.
Interests Determined U. S. Stand.
In other words, the existence of the
Monro doctrine never was a safeguard
of Latin american independence ex-
cept when the interests of the United
States were involved and never will
be otherwise in the future. Recent
events in Africa, then, should not
disturb the peace of romantic Mon
roeists," for if an attack were launched
In the near future against Latin
American independence the attitude
of the United States would be deter
mined, once more, not by the Monroe
doctrine but by its own material in
terests.
And it is plain to any student of
international affairs that the United
States would be just as much affected
by and therefore just as much inter-
ested in preventing the introduction
by force of European dominance in
Latin America as it was in 1928. AS
matter of fact, it should be much
more so today, when the Panama
Canal is the key to its military de-
tense, when its commercial inter-
ests are conceivably larger and when
the political disadvantages of large
neighboring European colonies would
be enhanced, potentially, by the IA
cilities of modern warfare.
Latins Not Worried.
So, Monroe doctrine or no Monroe
otrir
the United States could not view
any interposition for the purpose of
depressing" the Latin American coun-
tries cor controlling in any other man
ner their destiny by any European
power, in any other light than as the
manifestation of an unfriendly dispo-
sition toward the United States" ex-
actly as when these utterances were
originally made on December 2, 1923.
The only difference, if any, is that to-
day, due to the shortening of distances
by modern communications and the
| progress of military science, this would
cover much larger part of Latin
America than it did in the first dec
AIDES Of the Monroe doctrine.
IhaC Is why Latin Americans are
not losing any sleep over the passing
of the Monroe doctrine And that is
why, on the other hand, they have
welcomed the Buenos Aires instru-
ment by means of which the United
States. on a plane of equality with
the other American republics, agrees
to consult with them whenever the
peace Of the continent is threatened.
ecepsrtSht. 1881