ABSTRACT
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) is the offspring of two unlikely parents: fear and optimism. With the reorganization of NATO at the Lisbon Conference early in 1952, many political leaders felt the new organization would become the basis for a genuine partnership between the two continents, and they looked forward to the progressive emergence of an Atlantic community. To Paul-Henri Spaak, NATO, like the EEC, must eventually transcend the nation-state; he viewed the alliance as not merely as association of states, but as a potential supranational entity unto itself. Dirk Stikker, suffering from recurrent physical disabilities, could only watch as France began to disengage itself from the NATO military command structure. Manlio Brosio, perhaps better than his predecessors, understood the limitations of his Officer. If the secretary-general cannot function beyond the confines of the alliance, it becomes necessary to ascertain those elements that contribute to his effectiveness within NATO. NATO was originally conceived as a planning group among the allies.
