Evening star., 1940-11-22
Snuq Below the Bulge

The difficulties which seem TO
have arisen over the establishment
of an air base in Uruguay are
not clearly defined. That strong
opposition to the plan exists in
Argentina, small Uruguay's big
faeighbor, is obvious. Yet the Argen-
tine Embassy here has just issued a
denial that it's government had ex-
pressed an unfavorable opinion OF
the project, as had been intimated in
recent press dispatches from Buenos
Aires, the Argentine metropolis.
This proposed Uruguayan air base
is part of the plan for Western
Hemisphere defense initiated by the
United States and enthusiastically
seconded by most of the Latin Amer
ican republics. Most OF the oppoSi-
ton which was manifested here and
there when the plan was first
broached evaporated when our Gov
ernment made it clear that, unlike
the bases recently acquired from
Britain, the United States had not
requested leases and that therefore
no question of local sovereignty was
involved. Such opposition as still
remains centers almost exclusively in
the far south of our sister continent
the region south of what is known
as "the bulge of Brazil" where the
continent juts out so far into the
Atlantic Ocean that it is less than
1000 miles from Africa.
In South America "below the
bulge" the leading nation is the
Argentine Republic, with an area OF
over 100000 square miles and a
rapidly growing population OF about
$4,000, 900. With a temperate climate
and good soil devoted largely to
grain growing and livestock, Argen-
tina has developed much like our
own Middle West. 1t has also
evolved a proud nationalism which
aspires to leadership in South Amer
lea and which is extremely sensitive
to anything that might seem to make
it play a part subordinate to the
United States. That, rather than
positive hostility toward us, is the
main reason why Argentina has so
often baked at measures suggested
by our Government looking toward
closer Pan-American cooperation.
We are too ready to think OF South
America as a unit. The truth is that
this huge continent contains ten
nations, each jealous of its sovereign
rights and with local rivalries OF
which we know little.
Uruguay is small state about the
size of New England wedged in be-
tween two giants-Argentina and
Brazil. Argentina has always been
touchy over any foreign influence in
Uruguay, so the prospect OF United
States warships and warplanes using
an Uruguayan base, even on "Pan-
American" basis, inevitably evoked
antagonistic reactions in the Argen-
tine press and sections OF public
opinion. But to deduce from this
real hostility to the United States is
a false conclusion. Even more mis-
taken is the suspicion that Argen-
tina may be playing the game OF the
axis. The Argentine government has
recently cracked down on Nazi-
Fascist synpathizers within its bor-
ders, while the Argentine people are
for the most part almost fanatically
patriotic. They may be somewhat
"isolationist," but they are not pro-
German, pro-Italian or pro-Russian.
Therefore, there is no reason to think
that tactful diplomacy will not iron
out all difficulties that may have
arisen over a plan for Pan-American
defense which benefits Argentina as
much as it does the other nations of
the New World.