ABSTRACT
The second secretary-general of North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), Belgian statesman Paul-Henri Spaak, presented a striking contrast to his predecessor. Spaak pursued his political career—bedeviling opponents, exhorting followers, leading demonstrations—with an intense energy that carried over into his private life. Spaak's concern for NATO lay more on the political than on the military aspects of the alliance. The inclination of the big powers to bypass NATO and deal bilaterally, much to Spaak's chagrin, increased with the interest in bilateral summit diplomacy displayed during the latter 1950s and early 1960s. In retrospect Spaak's term as secretary-general can be divided into two periods, with the ascension to power of General Charles de Gaulle marking the turning point. Spaak's departure in 1961 did not signify a task completed, but rather an admission that the forces of nationalism that separated the members of the alliance were greater than those of the personality that sought to unite them.
