Evening star., 1953-05-10
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Western world could not afford
to wait out q normal recovery
period.
Judged in terms Of its original
objectives and as a weapon
against the hunger. poverty,
desperation and chaos" of the
day, the Marshall Plan must
rate as one of the most success
full international experiments
ever undertaken.
Things Looking Up.
From the economic standpoint,
European recovery has proceeded
faster during the four?year life
of the plan than the most opti-
miStic could have predicted at
the beginning. In every country
where American aid programs
were set up, overall production
has long since passed the pre-
war level, averaging about 40
per cent above the figures for
1888. With few exceptions, indus
tries are expanding rapidly. Un-
employment no longer represents
q serious threat. The general
atmosphere of economic well-be-
ing, judged by European stand
ards, is high.
Gains in the political field
have been hardly less spectac-
ular. Communism. to be sure,
remains powerful force in some
countries. but there is wide agree
ment that the hard-core strength
of the party is in steady decline.
A large proportion of the Com
munist vote in France and Italy
is considered today more as
routing protest against the exist
ing governments than the ex-
preston of a subverSive or revo-
lutionary tendency.
In the course of the past year,
communist leaders have provided
convincing proof of their own
weakness. Every big show they
have tried to stage, including the
latest general strike in Italy, has
fzzled pathetically. Communists
in NATO countries still would
represent g. threat as potential
saboteurs If it should come to a
shooting war. But the Red men
ace that once loomed so large
on the European horizon seems
to have been brought under con-
troll.
The trouble is, of course, that
the success Of the American aid
program cannot be measured to-
day In terms Of its original OBJ
jectives. The pressure Of histor-
1cal events since 1947-notably
the launching of NATO in 1949,
the start Of the Korean war the
following year and the dramatic
increase in the military threat
to western Europe-has demand
ed q drastic revision Of the pro-
grams scope and purpose.
To the original Marshall Plan
objectives, "a fourth was added
and given immediate priority;
American resources were to be
devoted directly to the task of
creating military strength in
Europe. A new Mutual Defense
Assistance structure, set up
under the Defense Department,
began pumping military hard
ware into Europe as fast as there
were men to handle it. Teams
of military technicians and ad-
visors were sent to each NATO
country to oversee the distribu-
ton of this equipment. Training
programs were set up to improve
maintenance standards and the
tactical employment OF new
weapons.
Economies OverShadOwed.
In this setup, the more
strictly economic aspects OF the
Marshall Plan tended to be
pushed into the background.
Under the new names of de
fense support" the program be-
came gradually geared to the
urgent task of supplimenting in
one way or another the rearma-
ment efforts of the individual
NATO countries. At the same
time, the drive went on to achieve
a long-range solution of Europe's
economic problems by broaden
ing the industrial base. increasing
productivity and breaking down
destructive trade practices.
This program-which soon be-
came the cornerstone Of NATO's
military effort and a decisive
factor in setting NATO's force
goals-has had certain practical
disadvantages, compared to the
original Marshal Plan. The OBJ