The Present Viability of NATO,SEATO,and CENTO

Abstract

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), the Southeast Asia Treaty Organization (SEATO), and the Central Treaty Organization (CENTO) were consid ered necessary in the postwar period to protect member-coun tries from Communist aggression and conspiracy. Subsequent developments have not always reflected the tidiness of inflexible and implacable confrontation, however. Thus, the viability of this postwar structure of alliances is raised ever more insist ently. Do NATO, SEATO, and CENTO serve any longer the interests of the West? Or has the time now arrived for their complete reappraisal? The view gains ground in western Europe that there is now considerable diversity in the Com munist world, and that a policy of positive coexistence should be pursued in the tackling of common problems with such coun tries as are ready to do so. In this fluid situation, a policy of movement is desirable, especially in Europe, where economic as well as political initiatives on behalf of a reconstructed NATO can provide pointers for the continued viability of CENTO and SEATO. The pending renegotiation of the NATO Pact can provide such economic initiatives. It can also provide the model of a self-supporting security system under the Soviet-American nuclear balance.