Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1957-05-05

made in these areas, we must
be prepared to intervene quickly
and effectively in case national
decision demands military &C.
ton. We have the capability to
do this today in our overall
Army Navy Marine Air Force
forces. We also have q wide
variety of weapons we could en-
|ploy. They range from 30-cali-
Der ammunition to megaton
bombs. We must be ready to use
these weapons selectively and
discriminatory in these situa-
tons. We must not hesitate to
use our best weapons against
aggressors when the situation
demands it.
I feel that the important
thing in any local conflicts in
which We are involved is rapid
response, to snuff out the mill
tary threat quickly and prevent
the battle spreading.
The type Of weapon and the
forces to be used would, I think,
be different in each case, de-
pending on the circumstances.
In some cases perhaps only one
service might provide the bulk
of American participation. In
other cases involving larger areas
like Korea we might require
major effort by all services. Our
response in forces and weapons
would be tailored to the con-
ditions existing at that time.
Atomic Weapons Ready
1t might be. in some instances,
that nuclear weapons would be
our most effective means of
stopping the conflict. For other
situations we might not need or
want to use them. But I think
that any would-be aggreSsors
should assume that, If the United
States is forced to engage in
war. this country intends to act
firmly and decisively.
We must recognize, of course,
that little wars" may or may
not be our ''little wars" If ag-
gressors force conflicts upon us
that clearly become our little
wars" we must use what 1t takes.
@. And meanwhile we would
be holding in reserve large
atomic and nuclear weapons in
case Of world war?
A That's right. Well fight
these small wars If we must
and during this time be sure to
maintain our capabilities for
total war, in case the conflict
were to widen. We have stable
tactical forces for these situa-
tons. I feel: and as it stands
today. the forces of the United
States are capable Of responding
effectively in any small-war sit
uation in which we might be
forced to engage.
All Kinds of Missiles
O. May I ask you~about the
missiles we have2 n4
A. There are all kinds Of mis-
lsiles. They are classified in terms
|of where they are launched and
what they hit. Interceptor, planes
carry air-to-air missiles. The
Army has ground-to-air missiles,
like the Nike. to shoot down air.
planes. Bombers can carry air
to-surface missiles. Then there
are all kinds Of surface-to-sur-
face missiles from very short
range up to over 5000 miles.
Some missiles are operated by
rocket engines that carry all the
fuel and oxygen right in the mis-
sile itself and don't need the out
side air. Others, like our Shark
and Navajo. are what we call air.
breathing types. They're powered
by jet or ram-jet engines which
need outside oxygen to operate
There are many different kinds
of guidance systems to obtain
the accuracy to hit a target. The
speeds all vary. The rocket, OF
course, is the fastest type OF
missile. 1t flies higher, farther
and faster than any other ali
weapon. 1t gets UP to speeds OF
10. 900 miles an hour or better
Air-breathing missiles. on the
other hand. ny more like q JET
airplane. Some of them would
be subsonic. others supersonic.
J @. Are you satisfied with the
three youth returning home