Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1956-11-30
NEARING q Zero Hour

The zero hour for concerted Ameri-
can effort to help Western Europe meet
its essential petroleum needs clearly is
drawing near. For nearly five weeks,
with the Suez Canal blocked and one Of
the two major pipelines cut, Europe has
been shut of from the bulk of its daily
million barrels of oil imports from the
Middle East. Not until this week did the
first of the poStcriSiS tanker deliveries
around South Africa reach British port
and only handful of extra ships have
yet sailed from the Western Hemisphere.
Restriction on civilian oil and gasoline
consumption already has been imposed in
several countries. but far more important
requirements are to be affected soon. Re-
duced allowances Of industrial fuel oils
in some cases by as much as one-third
will mean lower production of goods,
higher production costs and rising unem-
ployment Emergency commercial pur-
chaSeS threaten currency reserves, par
ticularly where dollar oil" is involved.
In short, the West European economy
which had recovered so strongly since
World War II, and largely with American
aid, is seriously threatened.
In some degree, all of these unfor-
tunate consequences of the Middle East
crisis already are assured. Their dura-
ton and their intensity will depend very
much on how soon and to what extent
we act to help question that appears
dependent in turn on the schedule for
British French withdrawal of invasion
troops from Egypt There are indica-
lions that this problem is moving to a
reasonably satisfactory solution, with a
definitive statement on the matter prom
ised by British Foreign Minister Lloyd
on Monday. The. job then of supplying
the oil has three partS-eStablishing the
source, making ocean transport available
and, probably, assisting in the financing
Fortunately, tentative plans to meet
such crisis were made last summer
when the Egyptian government national
lied the canal company-by the Middle
East Emergency Committee, made up of
government and oil company representa-
tiveS. One step, bearing upon the source
of replacement oil, is to increase produc-
ton in the United States and Venezuela.
Two important oil States, Texas and
Louisiana, already have granted permits
sion for increased production and Ameri-
can companies in Venezuela can do like
wise without diff1culty A second step is
to divert normal American imports from
the Middle East to West Europe, includ-
Ing that portion moving through Tapline
from Saudi Arabia to the Mediterranean
permitting a shorter haul by tanker
A third step is to revise American and
friendly" tanker services to make ade-
quate shipping available for both trans
atlantic hauling and the long run from
the Persian Gulf around South Africa
to Europe. Work at reactivating reserve
American tankers already is under way
and the M. E. E. c., through its access
to oil company fleets, is in position to
coordinate the revised transport Sched-
ules. The financing problem involves
both higher transportation costs and
higher prices for the oil itself. Middle
East oil is quoted at about 50 per barrel,
American oil at the Gulf of Mexico at
about $S.25. Secretary Of State Dulles
said last summer that our Government
would aid in the financing, but the details
have not been revealed.
This is, obviously, large and COM
plicated job. 1t is equally obvious, how
ever, that neither we nor the nations Of
free Europe can allow their industry and
military security to be damaged irrepa-
rably. It is time for agreement and action
to prevent it.