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The signing of the North Atlantic Treaty on April 4, 1949, gave rise to a number of books and articles on the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) the volume of which will probably continue for some time. The treaty and the organization that it created represent the clearest challenge to Soviet expansionism since the end of World War II. Through this action twelve nations of North America and western Europe resolved to consider an armed attack against one member an attack against them all, and to create sufficient stiength within the alliance to deter potential aggressors. But NATO's continuing interest to commentators stems from reasons other than its value as a weapon against the spread of communism. To some writers NATO appears to be a stimulant that would revive a moribund United Nations, to others it is the beginning of a new kind of alliance unprecedented in history, to still others, it is a symbol of America's rejection of isolationism. So vague are some of the treaty's articles and so rapid has been the evolution of the organization that almost any observer could derive whatever meaning he wishes out of NATO's development.

NatoHas appeared under many labels since its creation — Guardian of Peace, Pawn of Power Politics, Savior of the West, and Harbinger of War. All of them probably have some validity. But no matter which sobriquet is most applicable, the most significant feature of the alliance may be that it has survived twelve years of continuous challenges. By its survival it has become the symbol of America's abandonment of isolationism. In an age in which foreign policy plays the kind of role in domestic politics that would have been unthinkable in the nineteenth century, NATO represents a coherence in foreign policy that transcends party differences. Conceived under the Republican 80th Congress, put into effect by President Truman and Secretary Acheson, and expanded by President Eisenhower and Secretary Dulles, NATO now takes its place with the New Deal as a major factor in American life in the mid-twentieth century.

Contents: (1) Origins of the Mutual Defense Assistance Program; (2) Military Assistance and the Beginnings of the North Atlantic Treaty; (3) The Mutual Defense Assistance Act of 1949; (4) Administration of the MDAP, October 1949-January 1950; (5) The NATO Symbol in Transition, January-April 1950; (6) The NATO Symbol in Transition, April-June 1950; (7) Impact of the Korean War on NATO, June-September 1950; (8) From New York to Brussels, September-December 1950; (9) Toward Lisbon; and (10) The Military Assistance Program and NATO.

One for All offers a detailed analysis of the historical antecedents of the North Atlantic Alliance, focusing on the logistical infrastructure on which the success of its strategies depend, and describing the technological and political problems that threaten its military effectiveness by threatening its logistical underpinnings.