72. Editorial Note
On June 4, Paul Nitze, former Director of the Policy Planning Staff at the Department of State and currently a member of the [Page 196] United Nations Force Project for the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, sent Francis Wilcox an 18-page paper entitled “Where and Under What Circumstances Might a United Nations Police Force Be Useful in the Future?” In a brief covering note addressed to Wilcox, Nitze commented that “Some of the people in S/P think it a little negative both on the evaluation of the need and on the evaluation of the possibilities of getting agreement to the use of such a force. I would appreciate any comments you might have.” (Department of State, IO Files: Lot 60 D 113, General)
Wilcox replied at length on June 6. He stated that Nitze’s paper had been circulated in the Bureau of International Organization Affairs and expressed pleasure that Nitze had sent a copy to the Policy Planning Staff since the Staff “has an even more direct interest in the background setting” within which such a United Nations force might be used. “I have found that too often the concept of a UN Force is considered in exclusively idealistic terms rather than in light of the world context in which it is expected to function,” Wilcox continued. He added that the United Nations Emergency Force created for use in Egypt during the Suez crisis of 1956 “required a special political composition designed to meet the needs and to avoid the pitfalls of that particular situation, which well might be inappropriate for any given further situation.” Wilcox wrote:
“Moreover, perhaps a major aspect of the problem is not so much one of how to create a Force in being, as of how much can be done in advance to establish the bases and modalities for quickly setting up a UN Force to meet a specific need when it arises. I have always felt that the concept of earmarking armed forces that evolved in the Uniting for Peace program is a sound way to approach this question. It seems to me that it is more important and politically more feasible to seek to get countries to commit themselves to designate certain units for possible UN use in the future than it is to try to establish a standing UN force located in a specific place. The crucial factor is the willingness of States to designate and hold ‘available’ certain forces.”
Wilcox closed by expressing agreement with Nitze’s suggestion that Eastern Europe might well become an area where such a United Nations Force could be employed in a peace-keeping role. “I was particularly impressed with your view that the existence of ‘United Nations tools of the type under study can create possibilities for action which the Russians must take into account in their planning.’” (Ibid.)