NATO NAGGING IN MOMENTS OF GRAVE CRISIS, NATO IS A MODEL OF 
ARM-IN-ARM HARMONY . BUT WHEN THERE ARE NO BERLIN BLOCKADES OR 
CUBAN MISSILES TO BRING OUT THEIR UNDERLYING UNITY, THE WESTERN ALLIES 
ARE DIVIDED . THERE IS LITTLE DOUBT ANYWHERE THAT THE U.S 
. HAS CRUSHING NUCLEAR SUPERIORITY OVER THE RUSSIANS . DISAGREEMENT ARISES 
OVER THE QUESTIONS OF 1) HOW MUCH OF A VOICE EUROPE 
IS TO HAVE AS TO WHEN AND HOW THIS U.S . 
FORCE IS TO BE APPLIED, AND 2) WHAT WESTERN STRATEGY SHOULD 
BE IN THE INTERMEDIATE GREY AREA SHORT OF TOTAL WAR, AN 
AREA IN WHICH NATO IS PERHAPS MORE IMPORTANT POLITICALLY THAN MILITARILY 
. THESE PROBLEMS SWIRLED UP AGAIN THIS WEEK AS THE FOREIGN 
AND DEFENSE MINISTERS OF 15 NATO NATIONS SAT DOWN FOR THEIR 
BIG ANNUAL REVIEW CONFERENCE IN PARIS . MASSIVE OR FLEXIBLE . 
FOR THE RECORD, THE AGENDA WAS CROWDED WITH DISTANT GENERAL MATTERS 
: WHAT NEXT IN DISARMAMENT TALKS WITH RUSSIA ? WHAT MEANING 
FOR THE WEST IN THE SINO-SOVIET SPLIT ? BUT IN A 
KIND OF CORRIDOR WARFARE AND IN SEPARATE BILATERAL MEETINGS, SOME FACTIONS 
TRIED TO MANEUVER THE U.S . INTO GIVING EUROPE MORE SAY 
IN THE USE OF THE H-BOMB, AND OTHERS LOOKED FOR WAYS 
TO FRUSTRATE CHARLES DE GAULLE'S FORCE DE DISSUASION . UNDER U.S 
. URGING, SECRETARY-GENERAL DIRK STIKKER (AILING AND PROBABLY DUE FOR EARLY 
RETIREMENT) IS CARRYING OUT SWEEPING STUDIES TO REASSESS NATO FORCE LEVELS 
AND BASIC STRATEGY . THE FRENCH HAVE BEEN WORKING AGAINST THE 
" STIKKER STUDIES . " CLINGING TO THEIR OWN MASSIVE RETALIATION 
THEORY, WHICH HOLDS THAT ANY AGGRESSION IN EUROPE MUST TURN INTO 
A NUCLEAR WAR, DE GAULLE'S MEN SNEER AT WASHINGTON'S CONCEPT OF 
" BALANCED " CONVENTIONAL-AND-NUCLEAR FORCES TO PROVIDE A " FLEXIBLE RESPONSE 
" TO RED MOVES . FORCE OR FARCE . PARIS IS 
EQUALLY SKEPTICAL OF WASHINGTON'S PROPOSED MULTILATERAL FORCE ( " MULTILATERAL FARCE, 
" THE FRENCH CALL IT) . SO ARE MOST OF THE 
OTHER ALLIES . BUT AT LEAST A FEW ARE BEGINNING TO 
BELIEVE THAT THE IDEA SURFACE SHIPS ARMED WITH POLARIS WEAPONS AND 
MANNED BY MIXED CREWS FROM VARIOUS NATO NATIONS JUST MIGHT WORK. 
NO ONE HAS ANY OTHER PRACTICAL OR EVEN IMPRACTICAL PLAN TO 
GIVE EUROPE A GREATER SHARE IN THE USE OF THE BOMB 
. FROM THE RATIONAL FRENCH VIEWPOINT, THE SENSE OF " SHARING 
" PROVIDED BY MLF WOULD BE AN ILLUSION, SINCE THE U.S 
. WOULD STILL RETAIN CONTROL OF THE MISSILES THEMSELVES . BUT 
LYNDON JOHNSON HAS HINTED THAT THIS CONTROL MIGHT BE TRANSFERRED TO 
THE EUROPEANS IF AND WHEN EUROPE TRULY UNITES . THERE WERE 
OTHER NATO PROBLEMS AND SQUABBLES : THE COMMAND STRUCTURE IS BADLY 
OUTDATED, AND THE WESTERN BIG THREE ARE TOO HEAVILY REPRESENTED ON 
NATO STAFFS AT THE EXPENSE OF OTHER ALLIES . ONE CONCRETE 
ACCOMPLISHMENT : AGREEMENT TO SET UP A $308 MILLION ELECTRONIC SYSTEM 
STRETCHING FROM NORWAY TO TURKEY THAT WILL PROVIDE QUICK IDENTIFICATION AND 
CONTROL FOR SUCH FASTMOVING NEW AIRCRAFT AS THE F-104 . ITS 
LESS THAN MARTIAL NAME : NADGE (NATO AIR DEFENSE GROUND ENVIRONMENT) 
. SKEPTICS WERE REMINDED THAT NELSON'S FLAGSHIP VICTORY AT TRAFALGAR IN 
1805 WAS MANNED BY 16 DIFFERENT NATIONALITIES . 