The Ties That Bind

As far as armaments are concerned, the protests from West Germans that they were about to be left in the lurch by the U.S. hardly came with good grace. Only a few days earlier, U.S. Defense Secretary Robert McNamara, during a whirlwind tour of West German military installations, had signed agreements that bind the U.S. militarily to West Germany more closely than to almost any other nation. Items:

> A joint project to develop a new battle tank for the 1970s. Estimated development costs of $100 million a year would be shared equally.

> Creation of a permanent combined staff to work out a system for the use of common military equipment and supply channels.

> The first steps toward a continuing program of joint military research and development projects.

> A U.S. commitment to help West Germany build nuclear-missile cruisers and jet helicopters.

In other words, a top Defense Department official explained, the U.S. is becoming impatient with the rest of NATO and finds its most effective partner for European defense in West Germany. "Under no circumstances," he said, "must we back away from our buildup in Europe. The Russians are only taking the road they have on the test ban because the pressure has been kept on them. We must keep up that pressure. Any reduction or slowdown would be disastrous."

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