Evening star., 1951-11-11
Military Commission
Report on Base Sites
= .s
In Spain Kept Secret
By John A. Giles

A military SURVEY mission has
completed a report which may
lead to negotiations for American
naval and air bases in Spain but
officials yesterday refused to COM
ment on the delicate situation.
Strong opposition among fellow
members of the North Atlantic
Treaty Organization to this coun-
try's unilateral talks with the
Franco government - expressed
openly when the plan was first
disclosed last July-is behind the
official reluctance to discuss it.
| Three Principal Complaints.
+ There are three principal rea-
sons for the NATO proposition:
/. The other members see the
pouring Of American dollars into
Spain as taking Just that much
from NATO. This is despite the
fact that Congress. in the Mutual
Security Act. specifically appro-
priated $10O million for economic,
technical and military assistance
to Spain at the discretion of Pres
ident Truman.
2. Important political elements
in France and Great Britain,
backed by many Americans, are
Iagainst the Franco regime from
an theological standpoint. They
remember Frances friendly rela-
tions with Hitler and MuSsolini.
3. Some of our Allies have OBJ
jections other than financial or
theological. There has been men,
ton of the Pyrenees as a powerful
barrier to any Communist ad-
vance into Spain. This raises
uncomfortable feelings among ma
tions along the the long road
which the Reds would travel be-
fore reaching the point. French
men find little qualification in
the idea that the Reds might be
stopped after chasing the Allies
westward through France itself.
But as to the proposed Ameri-
can use of the Spanish bases,
many ranking French and British
military officers privately agree
that they favor such an arrange
ment as military necessity, how.
ever much they join their gov
ernments in officially deploring
the political aspect.
That is because it Is not diff
f1cult for military men to see
the value of bases behind a solid
land barrier such as the Pyre-
neeS.
There are these three prime ad-
vantages, officials point out:
/. There would be safe anchor
ages and supply points just inside
the Strait of Gibraltar.
2. There would be air bases to
support sea or land operations
and to, provide takeoff points and
support for long range atomic
bombers. s s't' = ?
3. There would be at the out
side edge of the Bay of Biscay
strong anti-submarine bases to
protect sea traffic through the
North and Middle Atlantic.
All three of these projects
would benefit Spain defensively
and hence should enyoke counter
aid from, that country as an ally
Iof America, If not a member of
NATO. which happens to be out
OF the question now.
The purpose of the survey team,
headed by Air Force Maj. Gen.
James w. Spry, was to examine
all possibilities, estimate each
possibility's military value and the
cost of the necessary work, and
then make a recommending re-
port.
Yet until the report Is examined
by the Joint Chiefs of Staff, De-
fense Secretary Lovett and Secre-
itary of State Acheson-who must
take into considerations Spain S
demands in return-it is doubtful
that much work can be done
on any base.
The dispatch Of the mission, last
August followed initial talks with
France by the late Admiral For
rest P. Sherman. then Chief of
Naval Operations. Details of those
talks never have been disclosed.