Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1958-03-16
By BEN T. MOORE

Western Europe is moving
toward economic unity. The
treaties providing for a common
market and a joint agency for the
development of peaceful atomic
power, known as Euratom. have
been ratified by France and West
Germany with little opposition.
and their final approval by all
six members seems assured.
Most of the other free countries
Of Europe are likely to join with
the six in seeking to establish a.
broader free-trade area.
This ohesion in economic
affairs. however, is not as yet
complemented and strengthened
by similar progress toward polit-
ical and military unity. True.
Western Europe has two political
organizations: The Council of
Europe and the Western European
Union. But the leading powers Of
Western Europe are preoccupied
with matters which turn. their
attention away from their COM
mon region - Britain with the
Middle East, France with North
Africa, and West Germany with
reuniflcation of the German state.
Even the North Atlantic Treaty
Organization. which has long been
a cohesive force not only in West
ern Europe but also in the North
Atlantic area, reflects divisive
tendencies. There is no agreement
over NATO strategy. Except in
the case of West Germany. nATO
forces have been reduced and
further cuts are in prospect.
Our Policy Is Ambiguous
This contrast between a vigorous
movement toward economic unity
and a weakening Of political and
military unity points up an
ambiguity in American policy to-
ward Western Europe.
Since the initiation of the Mar
shall Plan in l947 the United
States has strongly supported
Western European unity. We
stressed its economic advantages:
The gains in productivity, eff
cheney and growth which large
competitive market would make
possible; the improvement in Eu-
ropes world competitive position
and in consequent independence
from American economic aid.
But underlying this economic
reasoning were political motives.
A united Europe, we felt. could
be strong and powerful and
force for peace in its own right.
Moreover, European union. we
reasoned. would tie Western Ger
many tightly to its neighbors and
forestall the possibility of
united but neutral or pro-Soviet
Germany.
Yet in our military policy we
have backed away from European
union. NATO is based on the prin-
ciple of North Atlantic unity. 1t
assumes that American power is
essential for European security,
that even a united Europe can
not stand up to the USSR. On
this assumption, however. Europe
can never achieve position of
truly independent strength and in
f1uence; nor is it likely that meas
ures of European unity which
omit the military problem can
deal effectively with the German
problem.
We have. in fact, supported both
European and Atlantic unity on
the grounds that they are COM
patible with, and will reinforce,
each other. To a degree this has
been true; European economic CO.
operation has prospered under the
protection afforded by Atlantic
military cooperation in NATO.
But the political and military di-
lemmas in Western Europe can
not be resolved without some diff
ficult choices between European
and Atlantic unity.
The broadening of the Euro
pean market has been accompa-
MED by brilliant prosperity. West
ern Europe's output has grown at
a more rapid rate than that of the
United States.