North Atlantic Treaty Organization

CouncilThe twelfth session of the Council of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization was held in Paris, December 14 to 16, 1953, under the chairmanship of French Foreign Minister Bidault. Prior to the opening of the Council session, the permanent representatives of the NATO members and the Military Committee held a series of meetings in Paris preparing the annual review of the military situation of NATO and estimates and recommendations for future action. According to information appearing in the press, the military experts of NATO did not emphasize in this report, as they had done in the past, the need or desirability of numerical increases in NATO armed forces; instead, they were reported to emphasize the need for improving the quality, maintenance, and supplies of existing forces. At a press conference on December 11, Admiral Qvistgaard (Denmark), Chairman of the Military Committee, said that the committee was “satisfied” with the military progress of NATO in 1953 and that force goals set at the April 1953 meeting of the NATO Council had been “substantially achieved”. The Committee shared the view, however, of the Supreme Commander, Allied Forces, Europe (SACEUR, Gruenther) that the Supreme Command (SCAP) was deficient in airpower. In analyzing current Soviet strength, Admiral Qvistgaard said that the Committee saw no sign of a slackening of Soviet strength. Studies on the effect of atomic weapons on NATO defense plans were not yet completed, the Admiral continued. He added that it was the view of the Committee that NATO had nearly reached a state of preparedness which represented what most countries considered their maximum effort.