Evening star., 1949-08-22

Seen Resfafing Policy
Action Of House Called
Important in View Of
Attitude on Disorming
By David Laurence
Like a breath of fresh air in a
world of staleness comes the little
noticed but all-important action
of the House Of Representatives
in amending the declaration OF
principles" in the arms aid bill
50 as to proclaim anew the pur-
pose Of the United States to strive
for a reduction in armament
when the opportunity arises.
Some testimony from the Sec
retary Of Defense before the
House Foreign Affairs Committee
recently indicated callousness
and cynicism on the subject Of
disarmament. It remained for
Norman Thomas, Socialist, to
enunciate before a Senate COM
mittee a different doctrine Of
morality in international affairs
today. He urged that. while our
defenses be built up, America
make provision for a possible
diminution of armament spend
ing coincident with an effort to
secure peace.
Almost at the same time that
Mr.. Thomas was testifying, the
House was unanimously passing
an amendment to the preamble
Of the arms aid bill reading as
follows:
"The Congress reaffirms the
policy of the United States to seek
agreements to provide the United
Nations with armed forces as
contemplated in the charter and
agreements to achieve universal
control of weapons of mass de-
struction and universal regulation
and reduction of armaments, in
cluding armed forces. under ade-
quate safeguards to protect COM
plying nations against violation
and evasion"
Agrees With Historic Policy.
This is in line with tradition
and historic policy for decades
past. Almost every appropriation
bill for naval building passed by
the House for many years con-
tanned a proviso that the Presi-
dent was authorized to terminate
the construction at any time when
it appeared that an international
agreement to reduce armaments
was being achieved.
For generations the idea Of a
naval holiday" has symbolized
the same purpose. The United
States at no time, outside war
years, has authorized a standing
army of a size which could be re-
garded as engaging in an arma-
ment race. Today, however. the
building up of a powerful navy
and strategic air forces constitutes
one phase of an armament race
which is designed to balance the
presence of Russia's huge standing
army.
Thus, the familiar argument Is
that Russia is bent on aggression
and that the Soviets intend to at
tack the Allied world and deprive
their peoples of liberties. This is
the thesis for armament building
that has dominated militaristic
thinking throughout the ages.
Instead of calling for an imme-
diate demobilization of the Red
Army and promising that Amer
lean and Allied ornaments would
then be held in allegiance, no move
Is made by the President toward
negotiating a reduction in arma-
ment. It is argued that Russia al
ready has 200 divisions in her ar
my and that the Allies couldn't
mobilize as many as 40, even with
the European arms program now
being considered. For this reason,
the proposal is that the United
States maintain a strategic air
force large enough to attack Rus
sian targets instantly.
An Agreement Necessary.
Sooner or later there must be
an international agreement on air
power just as there has been on
naval building In the past. A Ger
tain measure Of disarmament has
already been accomplished so far
as the United States Navy is con-
cerned by cutting down its own
air power-as If air power were
something worth spending money
! for only when it arises from or
lilies to land bases.
: Reduction of the efficiency of
Americas naval air power is now
an accomplished fact and Secre-
, tary johnson is getting ready to
cut the whole Navy virtually in
b half next year. Land-based air
= forces, however, are being in
creased, and this Is the direction In
which a reduction in armament
could next be examined. For if
the cut In the Navy were part of
. q general reduction of armament
intended to bring a mood Of peace
In the world. then it would be well
worth the sacrifices made and it
would warrant a similar cut in
,land-based air power provided, of