Evening star., 1961-02-04
No Harm in Trying

NO .H0fm IN ITWnQ
President Kennedy has done timely
thing, though not a novel one, in pledging
in his state-of- -the-U Union message that
his administration will promptly explore
all possible areas of scientific and
chronological cooperation with Soviet
Russia and other nations. The objective
Of this, as he has put it, will be ITO
invoke the wonders Of science instead
Of its terrors" and thus promote the
peace and progress Of mankind.
Accordingly, as sort Of beginning,
Mr.. Kennedy has specifically invited
all countries, including the UssR, "to
join with us in developing q weather
prediction program, In new COM
municationS satellite program and in
preparation for probing the distant
planets Of Mars and Venus" AS for
direct American-Soviet collaboration,
the President has flatly declared (some
Of our experts would qualify the state
ment) that although the Russians at
present can put bigger payloads into
orbit, we are ahead Of them in "the
science ana technology Of space" and
so he would have our two nations help
themselves as well as others by working
together in this field instead Of making
1t just another arena OF "the bitter and
wasteful cold war"
Given such. Joint endeavor In
space, then the United States, according
to Mr.. Kennedy, would commit itself to
an even broader international effort
involving greatly expanded programs
aimed at extending farm technology to
needy lands, wiping out disease, in
creaSing exchanges Of scientists, etc.
And why should ideologically opposed
systems cooperate in these types Of
undertakings2 Indeed, isn't 1t sheer
wiShfulneSS to expect them to CO.
operator AS the President sees 1t, the
answer Is simply this: where nature
makes natural allies Of us all, we can
demonstrate that beneficial relations
are possible even with those with whom
we most deeply disagree-and this must
some day be the basis Of world peace
and world law" .-.---...---..---.. .-....-...-
Well said. Yet the fact remains, Of
course, that there is nothing essentially
new in Mr.. Kennedy's bid for co-operas
ton with the Russians. Actually,
beginning as far back as the end Of the
Second World War, comparable bids
were made by President Truman In con-
nection with such undertakings as the
Marshall Plan for European recovery.
and proposals like the one calling for
an international atomic authority.
Similarly, often with great eloQuence,
President Eisenhower during his admin
istration repeatedly. and futilely, ap-
pealed to the Kremlin to work with US
honestly and earnestly in numerous
SPECIFIC projects like the Atoms-for-
Peace program and special space
ventures designed to benefit peoples
everywhere.
Nevertheless, although not new In
any basic sense, Mr.. Kennedy'S pro-
posals for American-Soviet cooperation
are very much to the point at time
when Premier Khrushchev processes to
be anxious for radically improved
relations" between his country and ours
Needless to say, In view Of what
happened to the similar Truman -Eisen-
hover proposals, the outlook for such
cooperation seems dim. Still, hope
springs eternal, and there Is no harm in
trying to persuade the Kremlin to start
giving honest support, at long last, to
the building Of decent and enduring
peace. -&