Pressures to extend the activities of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) into fields other than the military, or actually to shift the emphasis to political, economic, and cultural objectives, have been so strong in recent years that one wonders whether there has not been a growing tendency, particularly in Europe, to lose sight of the purpose for which NATO was established and which makes it vital to the United States. Essentially, NATO is a multilateral military alliance for the protection of western and southern Europe against Soviet conquest, a means of denying these areas and their resources to the Soviets. If the members of the alliance, on one side or the other of the Atlantic, were ever to reach the conclusion that the threat of military attack from the east had vanished or that it could not be countered effectively by common military effort, NATO would have lost its original raison d'être, though it might be continued for the sake of what today are secondary non-military functions, such as political conciliation and economic collaboration. It should be added that the primacy of the military purpose of NATO, as it exists today, does not preclude the desirability or even the necessity of extending its scope beyond purely military matters. As Ruth C. Lawson has pointed out, there is little hope for reliable military collaboration among countries ohat do not succeed in attaining a reasonable degree of harmony between their political aims and policies. Cyprus, Suez, and Algeria are symptomatic of the problems NATO faces in the political field.

The organization of the world's ninety-odd states into various systems of competing and overlapping regional associations has now been a fact of international relations for over ten years. It cannot be said that as a fact it has gone unnoticed. On the contrary, regionalism has given rise to a floodtide of literature bitterly critical of the development or determined to justify it as a necessity for world security and a support for a sagging UN structure.

A significant aspect of post-Stalinist Soviet foreign policy has been the flexibility and imaginativeness with which it has maneuvered in under-developed areas, particularly in the non-aligned nations of Southern Asia—Afghanistan, Burma, Ceylon, India, and Indonesia. This innovation involved a fundamental shift in tactics and must now be considered a prominent feature of Soviet foreign policy. The previous neglect of South Asia was occasioned by a preoccupation with the sovietization of eastern Europe, the imperatives of postwar reconstruction and economic expansion, and the rise of communist China; it may also be attributed, in important measure, to Stalin's underestimation of the role which the area might play in enhancing the international position of the Soviet Union. This aspect of Stalinism is now over. Since 1953, Soviet leadership has pushed its interests in South Asia with skill and vigor, both on a bilateral basis and within the framework of international organizations. Of late, the bilateral ventures have received careful attention in this country. Less systematic attention, however, has been devoted to Soviet behavior in international economic organizations. In this respect, the UN Economic Commission for Asia and the Far East (ECAFE) affords an excellent opportunity to investigate this phase of Soviet political behavior.

Since its inception twelve years ago the UN has never handled very large sums of money by comparison with national budgets. Nevertheless, the small contributions have often been given grudgingly by member states with mumblings of “waste” about the personnel and the programs. In our view such innuendoes are unfounded. But we think there is room for improvement in the presentation of the budgets of the UN and its specialized agencies, particularly by developing appropriation categories which tend to indicate and measure the performance of the Organization.

The third emergency special session of the General Assembly, summoned by the Secretary-Generall in accordance with a resolution adopted by the Security Council at its 838th meeting on August 7, 1958, 2 was held from August 8 through August 21, 1958 (732d–746th plenary meetings). Following the adoption of the provisional agenda,3 the Soviet delegate, Mr. Sobolev, opened the discussion, urging that the General Assembly take steps to ensure the immediate withdrawal of the United States troops from Lebanon and the United Kingdomforces from Jordan because their presence constituted a permanent threat to the peace and security of the peoples and was a violation of the UN Charter. Mr. Lodge (United States) replied to Mr. Sobolev's statement, saying that the Soviet Union, in calling for a special General Assembly session, sought to attack the United States, but that this was not the purpose of the Security Council in voting for the United States resolution under which the session of the General Assembly was being held. The aim of the United States in introducing its resolution was to promote a chance for constructive action on the Middle East.

The following summary covers the activities of the Security Council from its 827th meeting through its 839th meeting (July 15—August 28, 1958).

The Trusteeship Council held its 22d session at UN headquarters from June 9 to August 5, 1958, under the presidency of Mr. Claeys Bouuaert (Belgium). The provisional agenda which the Council adopted included the examination of the annual reports on the administration of Togoland under French administration, New Guinea, Nauru, the Pacific Islands, Somaliland under Italian administration, and Western Samoa, as well as petitions relating to trust territories, arrangements for periodic visiting missions to trust territories in West Africa and in the Pacific in 1958 and 1959 respectively, matters referred to the Council by the General Assembly, and other matters.

Secretary-General Secretary-General Dag Hammarskjold in the introduction to his thirteenth annual report on the work of the Organization, June 16, 1957–June 15, 1958/ drew attention to some aspects of recent developments since the opening of the twelfth session of the General Assembly. He first dealt with the question of disarmament, observing that although new and serious difficulties had arisen to prevent pursuing the work in forms which had been followed in past years, efforts had been made Co approach one aspect of the problem from a new angle. In this context he referred to the meeting of experts from eight countries, representing both sides, which had convened in Geneva in the summer of 1958 to study the technical possibility of detecting violations of a possible agreement to suspend nuclear weapons tests. These experts agreed on what would be needed, from the technical point of view, and thus, by isolating certain non-political, scientific elements from the politically controversial elements in the total problem of disarmament, reduced the area of conflict some what. Mr. Hammarskjold suggested that it might be worth considering whether those elements of the problem of disarmament lending themselves to objective study by experts in science and technology, in military experience, and in law might not be singled out for separate treatment in a similar manner. The Secretary General noted that with the successful conclusion of the technical discussions at Geneva, all the present atomic powers had taken initiatives in the direction of a suspension of further weapons tests. The growing awareness of the increasing dangers of the continuing arms race might, Mr. Hammarskjold remarked, be reflected in the debates of the UN, were the General Assembly to resume discussion of disarmament under the item which he had proposed for the thirteenth session.

Case concerning the Arbitral Award Made by the King of Spain on December 23rd, 1906 (Honduras v. Nicaragua): On July 1, 1958, Honduras filed an application instituting proceedings against Nicaragua concerning an arbitral award made by the King of Spain with regard to the demarcation of the limits between the two countries. According to Article 5 of the Bonilla-Gamez Treaty which determined the limits, certain points in dispute might, in certain circumstances, be referred to the decision of the government of Spain. Thus an arbitration was requested from the King of Spain in October 1904, and the award was made on December 23, 1906. The application stated that, when the time came to proceed to the delimitation, Nicaragua contended that the arbitral award was a nullity and that it was not possible to resolve the dispute by diplomatic means or through the mediation of friendly nations and governments. Under the resolution adopted by the Organization of American States on July 5, 1957, the governments of Honduras and Nicaragua concluded an agreement at Washington on July 21, 1957, by virtue of which their dispute should be referred to the International Court of Justice. In its application Honduras requested the Court to declare that Nicaragua's failure to give effect to the arbitral award of 1906 constituted a breach of an international obligation and that Nicaragua was under an obligation to carry out the award.

The 27th session of the Council of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) was held in Rome from October 31 to November 1, 1957. In considering the provisional agenda for the ninth session of the FAO Conference/ the Council recommended a number of amendments and a rearrangement of certain items in the Director-General's program for work for 1958–1959. The Council approved various reports for submission to the Conference: that of the subcommittee on rules of procedure and financial regulations, containing proposed draft amendments to the constitution; that of the 29th session of the committee on commodity problems; and that of the 24th session of the committee on financial control.

On July 11, 1958, the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development made a loan equivalent to $33 million to the Japan Development Bank to assist the privately owned Sumitomo Metal Industries Ltd. to modernize and expand the capacity of its iron and steel plants. United States, German, and Swiss banks participated in the loan, without the Bank's guarantee, for a total amount equivalent to $1,100,000. The entire project was scheduled for completion by March 1962 at an estimated cost equivalent to $83 million. The Bank's loan, which financed approximately 40 percent of this total, was for a term of 15 years and bore interest of 5⅜ percent. It was guaranteed by the government of Japan.

The Ninth Annual Report on Exchange Restrictions of the International Monetary Fund, covering the period from May 1957 to April 1958, was transmitted to members and governors of the Fund on May 5, 1958.1 The Report noted that the period under review had showed mixed trends. While there had been relatively little overall progress in the formal relaxation of restrictions, there had been a significant strengthening of most internationally traded currencies, particularly in the opening months of 1958. There had been a marked improvement in the rates at which transferable currencies could be exchanged for convertible currencies in free markets, as well as an improvement in other rates against the dollar, particularly for the currencies of western Europe. The rates in these free markets had begun to approximate the rates in official markets. In this respect, there had been continued progress toward external convertibility.

The Administrative Council of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) held its thirteenth session in Geneva from April 21 to May 17, 1958, under the chairmanship of Dr. Manohar Balaji Sarwate (India). Reviewing its program of future meetings, the Council suggested that the Radio Conference should open on August 17, 1959, with a duration of four months, and the Plenipotentiary Conference on October 14, 1959, with a duration of two months, both in Geneva. The Council studied and commented on the report of the International Frequency Registration Board (IFRB) on progress in the implementation of the Atlantic City Table of frequency allocations.

The Executive Board of the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) held its 50th session in Paris, from April 21 to May 24, 1958. The main item on the agenda was the consideration of the organization's proposed program and budget for the next two years. The major purposes of the proposed program in its present form were to consolidate the achievements of the past few years, to reinforce priority activities, to ensure ever closer cooperation between UNESCO and the other UN organs and, in general, to maintain activities at the 1957–1958 level. In order to carry through this program, a budget of slightly over $24 million would be required. The organization would continue to devote a large part of its resources to the three “major projects” which were initiated in 1957, dealing with the extension of primary education in Latin America, scientific research on arid land, and mutual appreciation of eastern and western cultural values respectively. It was not intended to embark on any new “major projects” in 1959–1960, but special attention was to be paid to various projects which might be extended at a later date, namely the development of. secondary and vocational education in Africa, the production of reading material for new literates, and the study of the social implications of technological progress. The Board also discussed preparations for the next session of the General Conference: it approved a draft of the provisional agenda for the Conference; examined various documents for submission to the Conference; and discussed the list of states and organizations which were to be invited to send representatives to take part in the discussions or observers to follow them.

The Arab League Council held a meeting in Benghazi, Libya, from May 31 to June 6, 1958, to consider the Lebanese government's complaint of interference by the United Arab Republic in Lebanon's internal affairs. The Lebanese delegation informed the final meeting that its government was unable to accept a four-part resolution which had been devised by Libya, Sudan, Iraq, Jordan, Yemen, and Saudi Arabia in an attempt to produce a compromise acceptable to the two disputants. The Lebanese delegation's leader, Beshir Awal, was understood to have maintained that as the first clause of the resolution (calling on all Arab states to refrain from propaganda likely to upset normal relations between them) did not specifically mention the United Arab Republic (UAR) press and radio campaign against the Lebanese government, it was impossible for Lebanon to comply with the fourth clause of the resolution (that Lebanon should withdraw its complaint now before the Security Council). The Sudanese delegate, Mohamed Maghoub, was believed to have suggested that the Council could perhaps agree on the clause of the resolution which contained an appeal to the Lebanese people to cease from fratricidal strife. Agreement on this, too, proved impossible. Said Fahmy, for the UAR, gave his opinion that the Lebanese government had regarded the League Council session merely as a matter of form before taking its complaint to the Security Council. The delegates from Sudan, Iraq, Jordan, and Libya were sympathetic toward Lebanon.

The Council of the Baghdad Pact, meeting on the ministerial level, convened in London on July 28, 1958. It was reported that during its two-day meeting, Secretary of State Dulles committed the United States to partnership in the pact with the United Kingdom, Turkey, Iran, and Pakistan. The United States' acceptance of obligations expressed in Article 1 of the pact was accompanied by an oral promise to increase military assistance to the three Asian members. According to the press, these two steps were considered “just as good” as signing a treaty. There were two considerations, according to one source, in the procedure adopted by the United States of agreeing to obligations to members of the pact instead of becoming a full member: 1) special military and economic agreements to be made could be made immediately under the joint resolution on the Middle East passed by both Houses of Congress in March 1957; if the United States had joined the pact as a full member, a new treaty would have been involved requiring the Senate's ratification; 2) the United States was not committed to make such special agreements with Iraq, since the latter did not sign the declaration issued by the Council following its meetings on July 28.

On February 20, 1957, the Council of the Organization of American States (OAS) resolved to approve the text of the Protocol to the convention on duties and rights of states in the event of civil strife; as of August 30, 1957, seven countries had signed the Protocol. At a meeting on May 15 the Council approved a resolution concerning inter-American book festivals, which expressed the Council's keen satisfaction with the success of the first inter-American book festival, held in Caracas in November 1956, and established inter-American book festivals as a part of the cultural program of OAS.

The first part of the fourth session of the Assembly of the Western European Union (WEU) was held July 2–5, 1958, in Paris, under the presidency of Sir James Hutchison (United Kingdom, Conservative). In the course of its discussion of military questions, the Assembly debated three reports and took note of a communication by M. Etienne de la Vallée Poussin (Belgium, Social Christian) on the responsibility of WEU in military policy. After its consideration of the request for an opinion from the Consultative Assembly on the military implications of regional or limited disarmament or of the policy of disengagement in central Europe, the Assembly adopted a resolution rejecting the Rapacki Plan and stating that disengagement which implied a withdrawal of United States and Soviet troops would be highly dangerous to the west unless it took place under certain express conditions, one of these being that neutralization of western Germany could not form part of such a policy. The Assembly also adopted a resolution and a recommendation on WEU's contribution to the production of armaments within the Atlantic alliance; the resolution allowed for the creation of a committee of investigation of five members, to be nominated by the Presidential Committee. In connection with the state of European security the Council approved by 50 votes to 6, with 8 abstentions, a recommendation from its defense committee calling for a minimum land force in central Europe of 30 divisions, with tactical nuclear weapons. There was to be no reduction in the contribution of member states, according to the recommendation, and they were to bring their contingents up to the agreed level.

The twenty-eighth annual report of the Bank for International Settlements covering the financial year from April I, 1957, to March 31, 1958, was submitted to the annual general meeting of the Bank held at Basle on June 9, 1958. Details of the results of the year's business operations were given, together with a review of the current activities of the Bank and an analysis of the balance sheet as of March 31, 1958. The year was characterized by a stabilization of the resources at the disposal of the Bank at the high level reached the previous year and by a further increase in the volume of its operations. The financial year closed with a surplus of 19,317,738 gold francs, against 16,014,462 gold francs for the previous year; the net profit amounted to 9,317,738 gold francs, compared with 8,212,987 for the preceding year. The board of directors of the Bank recommended that the general meeting should declare a dividend of 6 percent.

The second half of the adjourned May 1958 session of the European Parliamentary Assembly was held June 21 to June 27, 1958.1 After holding two ballots, it was decided to recommend Brussels as the site of the European Community's institutions and the future capital of six-nation Europe. The resolution passed by the Assembly recommended that: the executives of the three Communities be grouped in one place; the Assembly's secretariat be located in the same place where the Assembly's standing committees would also meet; the capital be a European district similar to the District of Columbia in the United States; and there might be reasons to hold plenary sessions of the Assembly outside the chosen place, and while in principle all the Community's institutions should be situated in that place, the Court of Justice, the Investment Bank, and the European University could be situated elsewhere if that would facilitate the concentration of the political bodies in one place.