Foreign Relations of the United States, 1952–1954, Western European Security, Volume V, Part 1

740.5/2–2152: Telegram

The United States Delegation to the Department of State ¹

secret

Lisbon , February 21, 1952—7 a.m.

Secto 28. 1. Formal NAC mtg proceeded without incident.² Cordial welcome given Greece and Turk.

2. At first business session tonight³ report of MC ⁴ was referred to committee of Def Mins who will meet tomorrow morning. In considering MC comments on TCC report chairman indicated Def Mins wld also have before them TCC report, supplemental report, and proposed resolution.

3. DPB, FEB, and Deps reports⁵ noted.

4. Deps report on mil status agreement⁶ referred to Def Mins for consideration and report to Council.

5. Deps recommendation that public statement summarizing discussion under items 5 to 8 of Rome agenda⁷ not be prepared was agreed.

6. Discussion of political issues by Fon Mins scheduled for tomorrow morning. No new items proposed.

7. Harriman made brief statement on TCC report⁸ which was released to press. Discussion deferred until Def Mins views available.

8. On infrastructure Gen Gruenther defined hard core of third slice program and stressed urgency of decision at Lisbon. Proposed as slogan for Lisbon conference “Praise The Lord And Pass The Infrastructure”. Report on infrastructure just prepared by joint working grp, “C–9–D/11 revised”⁹ and para 10 of TCC resolution and annex A of supplementary TCC report referred to ministerial committee of countries concerned.¹⁰ Purpose is reach agreement at Lisbon on cost-sharing for hard core of third slice and on immediate action by host countries to acquire land.

9. Decision as to whether to hold plenary tomorrow to be made on basis progress ministerial committees during morning. Next scheduled items are consideration TCC report and Ger contribution to Eastern def, which will be taken up tomorrow afternoon or evening if possible.

1. This telegram was repeated for information to other NATO capitals.
2. For the brief report on that meeting, see telegram Secto 25, p. 112.

3. At the beginning of this meeting of the Council, the following agenda was adopted (document C9–D/6):

   • “1. Opening statements
   • 2. Adoption of agenda
   • 3. Reports by permanent North Atlantic Treaty organizations
   • 4. Report on Soviet foreign policy and exchange of views on political matters
   • 5. Coordinated analysis of NATO defense plans; report by Temporary Council Committee
   • 6. Infrastructure
   • 7. German participation in Western defense
   • 8. Future organization of NATO
   • 9. Report by the Committee on the North Atlantic community
   • 10. Other business
   • 11. Communiqué

   A copy of the agenda was transmitted in telegram Secto 35, Feb. 21, from Lisbon, not printed. (740.5/2–2152)

4. Military Committee Chairman General Foulkes presented document MC 5/4 Final, a report on the progress of NATO; document MC 38/2 Final, a report on the command arrangements when Greece and Turkey became members of NATO; document MC 40 Final, a report on the military effectiveness of the arrangements proposed by the Paris Conference on the European Defense Community; and documents MC 39 Final and MC 22/12 Final, containing the military comments on the report of the Temporary Council Committee. None of these Military Committee documents are printed.
5. The three reports were circulated to the Council as a 24 -page document C9–D/2, Feb. 11, not printed. The progress report of the Council Deputies was an outline of formal actions taken by the Deputies since the Rome session of the North Atlantic Council in November 1951. The progress report of the Finance and Economic Board was a factual statement of activities of the Board since the Rome session of the Council. These activities included such things as inaugurating a system of reporting quarterly defense expenditures, collecting information on wartime shipping requirements, and submitting a report to the Council Deputies on scarce materials. The progress report of the Defense Production Board outlined significant activities since the Rome Council session. These activities included a report on the industrial aspects of the standardization of small arms and ammunition and an appraisal of the possibilities of additional aircraft production in Europe. (Conference files, lot 59 D 95, CF 101)
6. Document C9–D/5, Feb. 8, 1952, was a report by the Council Deputies regarding the status of the Agreement between the Parties to the North Atlantic Treaty Regarding the Status of Their Forces, signed in London, June 19, 1951. The report summarized the progress of legislation in process or being considered by member governments in implementation of the agreement and progress of ratification of the agreement. (Conference files, lot 59 D 95, CF 101)
7. Under consideration at this point was document C9–D/9, Feb. 9, 1952, a report on the relative strength and capabilities of NATO and Soviet forces prepared by the Council Deputies and the Military Committee at the direction of the Council at its session in Rome in November 1951. The Council had directed that a version of such a report be prepared for public use. The Council Deputies and the Military Committee agreed that on security and military grounds it would not be possible to prepare a paper on the subject for public use. (Conference files, lot 59 D 95, CF 101)
8. Under consideration at this point was the report of the Temporary Council Committee of Dec. 18, 1951 (see the summary, p. 203), the supplementary report of the Temporary Council Committee (p. 211), and a draft resolution of the Council on the Reports of the Committee, document C 9–D/13, Feb. 19 (for the approved version of the resolution, see C9–D/20, Feb. 23, p. 220).
9. Document C9–D/11 (Revise), Feb. 20, 1952, “Problems Connected with the Financing of the Third Slice Infrastructure Program”, under discussion at this point was a 15-page paper including the Council Deputies review of the problems faced in implementing a Third Program (or “Slice”) for the construction of airfields, communications facilities, and military headquarters buildings (the items referred to as “infrastructure”) in the 1952–1953 period. The First and Second Programs (or “Slices”) had covered Western Union Defense Organization and NATO infrastructure activities in the 1950–1951 period; see Ismay, NATO, pp. 114–115. C9–D/11 (Revise) also presented the details of a SHAPE infrastructure program for 1952–1953 (the so-called “Third Slice Program”) described by the Council Deputies as the “minimum hard core of high priority projects” involving the construction of 53 new airfields, 58 communications facilities, and 10 military headquarters. (Conference files, lot 59 D 95, CF 101)
10. The Ministerial committee referred to here was more formally identified as the Special Committee to Consider the Financing of the Third Slice Infrastructure Program. It was also referred to as the Special Committee on Infrastructure. This committee, on which Secretary of Defense Lovett served as principal American representative, began meeting the following day and met at least once each day until Feb. 25. No formal records of the committee sessions have been found in Department of State files. For a summary account of the committee deliberations through Feb. 23, see telegram Secto 53, Feb. 23, from Lisbon, p. 192. For the report of the committee, see C9–D/21, Feb. 25, p. 196.