Evening star., 1961-12-13
WEUUrges
NAT0 10 GET
30 Divisions

FARlS, Dec. IL tAP) The
Western European Union as
sembly called on NATO today
to bring its ground forces up
to an agreed strength of 80
divisions, reasoning NATO
could thus avoid having to re-
sort to nuclear weapons in case
Of a Communist attack.
The North Atlantic alliance
now has about 20 fully
equipped divisions and is point
ing toward 81 or more by jan
uary l.
In a resolution, the assembly
also said the NATO Council
should be urged to give greater
authority to allied commanders
in the deployment Of their null
Irrational forces and at least
the right to determine their
own supply requirements.
Anthony Duynstee of the
Netherlands. a member of the
NATO parliamentarians con-
ference, said 80 NATO divisions
are not enough to counter ef-
fectively the Communist threat.
Limit Not Set
He said he was voting for
the resolution only because its
language does not limit NATO
to 80 divisions. The alliance, he
said, should have between 40
and so.
/ The Western European Un-
ion. established originally to
bring West Germany into
NATO and to control German
rearmament. said troop COM
manders must have more au-
thority to move their units
because they now are ham
pered by IAN intricate maze
Of national restrictions"
Gen. Lauris Norstad, supreme
commander in Europe, told
the gathering NATO's nuclear
arsenal is well distributed and
growing He said current talk
about the alliance itself a nu-
clear power has resulted in
great misconceptions about its
nuclear capability.
NATO, he said. has had the
capability Of delivering nuclear
blows against an aggressor for
many years, and West Ger
many has had such capability
for a few years.
But he emphasized there
is no plan or suggestion or re-
quirement to give independent
control over nuclear warheads"
to any country which does not
have its own.
U. S. Holds Warheads
Nuclear warheads that would
be available to NATO in the
event OF attack are now stock
piled at various American bases
IN Europe and are controlled by
the United States. A much
smaller number of British man
ufacture are controlled by Bri-
tain.
The other NATO allies have
no nuclear warheads but do
nave missiles and proiectiles
that can be fitted with such
Warheads.
Gen. Norstad said the Allan
tic alliance has not done
enough to strengthen its forces
in the face of the Soviet threat
to Berlin, but he acknowledged
that significant efforts have
been made to build up its
strength since the Communists
threw up their Berlin wall in
August.
He said that at that time
NATO had just over 21 divi-
sions. but that they were all
under strength and equivalent
to only IS or t6 effective divi-
sionS.
The effectiveness has been
considerably increased, so that
we will have 81 or %, or pos
sibly % fully equipped divisions
ready by January l." the gen.
eral estimated.
Gen. Norstad said the prob
lem of getting adequate sup
plies, equipment and combat
support units remains.
I'VE have not done enough.
We must do more. and that
takes time. effort and money.
=. There is no way out of it,"
he declared.
Disputes Russians
Reviewing progress of the last
year, he said the most impor-
tant was the establishment of a
Baltic approaches command. He
said this is not a German
Danish venture-as the Rus
slams have charged-but fully