German Rearmament?

To defend Europe against a Communist attack, Ike Eisenhower believes he needs at least 40 divisions and that at least ten of them must be provided by Germany. Last week the Western Allies, after flubbing the urgent question of German rearmament for more than a year, took a step toward a solution.

Most determined opponents of German rearmament are the French, who originally wanted to restrict German "combat teams" in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization to 5,000 men, bar Germans from heavy artillery or tactical aviation. The German reply was that they would never fight under such conditions; they demanded instead an independent German army serving under NATO of around 250,000 men, with artillery and air units manned by Germans.

Last spring, France's Rene Pleven, then Premier, offered a compromise: a European army of which German contingents larger than "combat teams" could be a part. For five months French, West German, Italian, Belgian and Luxembourg delegates (the British, Dutch and Scandinavians hung back) have been meeting in Paris, trying to transform the Pleven plan into reality.

Then, last month, Ike Eisenhower lost his patience, began to do a little discreet knuckle-rapping. Under Ike's prodding the French gave up some of their demands, the Germans began to warm to the Pleven plan. Last week the Paris delegates initialed an interim report on a European army suggesting:

P: Pooling of the armed forces of all Western European countries (with the exception of troops needed for internal security or colonial duty) under a new supranational authority. P: Complete equality and standardized arms for all units. P: Expenses to be borne by a common treasury.

Under the plan, a European soldier would be recruited on a national basis, uniformed and equipped by the European army, organized into a national unit but trained together with units from other countries. He would be commanded by officers of his own nationality but would ultimately take orders from Eisenhower and his NATO staff.

Before the paper plan can be transformed into an army, tremendous obstacles must be overcome. Even if remaining practical problems are settled (how to organize the new supranational authority, how to finance it, etc.), there will be stiff political opposition to the plan.

In France, Gaullists, Communists and some nearsighted or timid middle-of-the-roaders are sure to fight the plan's ratification tooth & nail. The British, at best, are lukewarm. But, as a disgusted German delegate said to a French colleague at the height of the haggling in Paris: "If we go on like this,--we'll be arguing about German rearmament in Siberia."

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