Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1956-01-01
JUL
Summit Conference
Viewed as Triumph
For Eisenhower

On several occasions the career
of Dwight D. Eisenhower has
reached what appeared at the time
to be its browning achievement.
One such occasion was the one
week Geneva conference of heads
of government in July.
In a most difficult atmosphere Of
synthetic friendlineSs, the President
succeeded in striking just the right
note of noble intentions, flrmness
and all-around world statesman
ship. He accepted the beguiling
smiles of Soviet leaders Bulganin
and Khrushchev at face value, but
neatly put their good intentions to
the acid test with his ''open sky"
disarmament plan. All this he did
without himself shattering the
spirit Of Geneva" an attitude of
co-operativeness which both Krem-
lin and Washington leaders had
assumed especially for this sum
nit" conference, In an effort to
find "a new approach" to ending
the cold war.
The formal business of the con-
ference went nowhere. German re-
unification. disarmament. European
security. and expansion Of East
West contactS-all these were dis
cussed but no progress worth men,
tioning was made.
informal Success
1t was in the informal areas
where the summit meeting sue
ceeded. That week of July 10
through "a may go down in history
as turning point in the nuclear
age. For each of the great powers,
the United States and the Soviet
Union, learned to itsNelief that the
other had a genuine horror Of nu-
clear war. The two nations came
to an unwritten agreement that
about war was too horrible for
either Of them to initiate-at least
for the time being, while the food
Of destructive weapons and delivery
systems still poured from the draw
ing boards Of their scientists and
engineers.
From the American standpoint.
the other principal achievement at
Geneva was to disarm Soviet prop
agandists who have been calling
this country a warmonger. Presi-
dent Eisenhower's dramatic pro-
posal for a Soviet-American ex-
change OF military blueprints and
aerial reconnaissance convinced the
world that the United States has
nothing to hide. His offer had the
additional advantage Of empha-
sizing the overriding importance
of arms inspection systems in pres
ent-day disarmament.
Basically. the United States STRAIT
egg at Geneva was to give Moscow
its choice between two alternatives,
continuation of the back break
ing pace of the arms race, or a
genuine understanding whereby all
the major powers could slacken
their military production pace and
turn inward to problems Of domes-
tic welfare. The Soviet Union spoke
as If it wanted to cope with more
Of its domestic problems, but acted
later as If it preferred to continue
the arms race.
Forth Satellites
Late in July. Washington in
creased the pace of the race slightly
with its announcement that a Sc
ries of earth satellites would be
launched into outer space in the
next two years, as a special feature
Of the International Geophysical
Year. Data from the satellites will
be made available to all the worlds
scientists, including Russia's, but
its main short-range significance
will be military. Experience gained
from this project will be applicable
in the race for the intercontinenta
ballistic missile. and beyond that.
for the Buck Rogers-type space
platform, which is envisioned by
some as sort of super aerial re-
connaisSance station and missile
launching platform.
One of the dividends from the
Soviet new look last summer was
the release Of Austria from its old
occupied status. Moscow finally
agreed to a treaty of independence
on July 81. The move was widely
looked upon as a key gambit in the
European power struggle, intended
to set an example of the good treat
ment that West Germany could
expect If she were to embrace neu-
trality rather than the North At
lantic community.
Even Red China entered into the
Geneva spirit. She agreed to talks
on the ambassadorial level with the
United States, about Americans held
against their will In mainland