Evening star., 1949-04-27
Secretary Acesos Statement Urging Approval of North Atlantic Treaty

wish merely 20 stress certain essen
t.al points Of the treaty.
The treaty Is carefully and con-
scientsosssly designed 20 conform II
every particular with the Charter
Of the United Nations and 20 con-
tribute 70 the accomplishments os
itS purposes. This In mace clear
In Article which reiterates and
reamrms the basic principle Of the
Charter, namely. that the p&rtsc.-
pating countries viii settle al their
international disputes. not onsy
among themselves but with any
nation. by peaceful means In ae-
cordanoe with the provisions OF
the Charter This declaration sets
the whole tone and spirit Of the
treaty and provides unmistakahle
proof that any allegations that the
treaty eonceals aggressive inten-
tions are obvious perversions Of the
truth. Democracies. by their very
nature must conduct their Affairs
openly. They could not even Il
they wished, conspire against any
one. individually or collectively.
Such allegations are belied both
by the terms Of the treaty and BY
the very nature of the free insti-
tutions upon which the stgnatory
governments are founded.
Article II demonstrates the con-
viction Of the parties that real peace
Is q positive and dynamic thing. that
1t Is much more than the mere ab-
sence Of war. In this article the
signatory governments assert that
they viii strengthen their free in
stitutions and see to it that the
fundamental purposes upon which
these institutions are founded are
better understood everywhere. They
also agree to seek TO eliminate con-
fiicts In their economic life and TO
promote economic cooperation
among themselves. Here is the ethical
essence Of the treaty-the common
resolve to preserve. strengthen and
make better understood the very
basis Of tolerance, restraint, freedom
and well-being, the really vital
things with which we are concerned
Article III. Of which I will speak
further later this morning. embodies
in the treaty the concept contained
In the Senate resolution of con
tinuous and effective self-help and
mutual aid" This means that no
party can rely on others for It's de-
Tense unless 1t does its utmost TO
defend itself and contribute toward
the defense Of the others.
Basic Purpose Of Treaty.
The basic purpose Of the treaty Is,
as recommended In the Senate reso-
luton, to contribute to the mainte-
nance of peace by making clear the
determination of the parties to exer-
else the right Of self-defense under
Article 81. should armed attack upon
any party occur. This provision is
contained In Article v. II the treaty
accomplishes its purpose such an
armed attack viii not occur. In
order to accomplish that purpose.
however, the parties must state
clearly what they would be prepared
to do II an armed attack should
occur.
Article v recognizes the basic fact
that an armed attack upon any
party would so threaten the national
security Of the other parties as to
be In effect an armed attack upon
all. It further provides that In the
event Of such an attack each OF them
will take. individually and In con-
cert with the other parties, what
ever action 1t deems necessary to
restore and maintain the security
Of the North Atlantic area, including
the use of armed force.
This naturally does not mean that
the United States would automat-