Economic Aspects of the NATO Alliance

The North Atlantic Treaty provides in Article 2 a very broad framework for political and economic cooperation, with a view to promoting conditions of stability and well-being and to eliminating conflict in international economic policies. However, very little has been done in this respect. The report of the Three Wise Men of 1956 broadly describes the aims which such actions should pursue more freedom trade and capital movements better coordination and more effective in aid to developing countries. The last objective named is of a broad character--that of building a good base for the working of free institutions. It recognizes that duplication with other institutions has to be avoided, particularly with the functions of what was then Organization for European Economic Cooperation OEEC, and which has developed into Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development OECD through full American and Canadian membership. In NATO itself, one may assume in all fairness that the main economic question which is directly dealt with is the capability of each member country to take its share of defense and armaments expenditure. This is an exercise which was started on the eve of the Lisbon conference of 1952.