Multilateral Force

Multilateral Force

The Multilateral Force (MLF) was an American proposal to produce a fleet of submarines and warships, each manned by international NATO crews, and armed with multiple nuclear-armed Polaris ballistic missiles. The proposal was floated by the Eisenhower and Kennedy administrations.

The proposal was inspired by the complaints of NATO countries that the nuclear defense of Europe was beholden to the Americans, who held the bulk of nuclear capability. The result would be a fleet of warships manned and operated by NATO command, instead of an assortment of independent forces ultimately under their own domestic banners. In this way, other NATO powers were theoretically ensured an active role in European defense.

The idea of using surface ships as part of the force received criticism in Europe, who felt that surface ships would be vulnerable to attack, while a wholly submarine force would be more difficult to eliminate. President Kennedy argued that using only submarines would defeat the purpose of minimizing American control of the force, as the United States was the primary power capable of building the requisite number of submarines and training their crews. Including surface vessels would allow for greater European involvement in both construction and training, argued Kennedy, who also dismissed the notion that an entire pan-Europe nuclear-armed fleet could be eliminated before any of them could commit retaliatory strikes.

The proposal eventually fell flat when American and European differences over basing strategies and financing could not be reconciled.

The prospect of having Germany in the Multilateral Force was mocked by Tom Lehrer in the satirical song "MLF Lullaby".

MLF experiment on USS Claude V. Ricketts

From June 1964 to end of 1965 USS Claude V. Ricketts (DDG-5) was part of a mixed-manning experiment for the proposed MLF. Its crew consisted of 10 officers and 164 crew from the US Navy with the remainder filled by sailors from West Germany, Italy, Greece, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, and Turkey. Though the MLF never was created, Secretary of the Navy Paul Nitze stated that the project on Claude V. Ricketts was successful.[1]

References

External links


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем решить контрольную работу

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Multilateral Force — Die Multilateral Force (MLF), deutsch: Multilaterale Atomstreitmacht[1], war zur Regierungszeit von John F. Kennedy ein amerikanischer Vorschlag von 1963, neben U Booten auch eine Flotte von rund 25 Kriegsschiffen der NATO zu produzieren, die… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • multilatéral — multilatéral, ale, aux [ myltilateral, o ] adj. • 1948; de multi et latéral ♦ Polit. Qui concerne des rapports entre États; à quoi adhèrent, participent plusieurs États. ⇒ plurilatéral. Un accord multilatéral. ⊗ CONTR. Unilatéral. ● multilatéral …   Encyclopédie Universelle

  • Multilateral foreign policy of the Holy See — The Holy See This article is part of the series: Politics and government of the Holy See …   Wikipedia

  • Multilateral treaty — A multilateral treaty is a treaty to which three or more sovereign states are parties.[1] Each party owes the same obligations to all other parties, except to the extent that they have stated reservations. Some examples of multilateral treaties… …   Wikipedia

  • New Zealand Defence Force — Te Ope Kaatua o Aotearoa Service branches Royal New Zealand Navy New Zealand Army Royal New Zealand Air Force Headquarters Wellington Leadership Com …   Wikipedia

  • United Nations Emergency Force — The first United Nations Emergency Force (UNEF) was established by United Nations General Assembly to secure an end to the 1956 Suez Crisis with resolution 1001 (ES I) on November 7, 1956, and in large measure as a result of efforts by UN… …   Wikipedia

  • Coordinating Committee for Multilateral Export Controls — Pour les articles homonymes, voir COCOM. Le Coordinating Committee for Multilateral Export Controls (ou CoCom, auparavant : Coordinating Committee for East West Trade Policy) a été fondé sous l influence des États Unis le… …   Wikipédia en Français

  • 149 Squadron, Republic of Singapore Air Force — Infobox Military Unit unit name=RSAF 149 Squadron role=Fighter bomber equipment=Sixteen F 5S/T Tiger IIs garrison=Paya Lebar Air Base motto= Steadfast dates=1 June 1985 identification symbol=Shikra battle honours=The 149 Squadron Shikra of the… …   Wikipedia

  • Beitrittskandidaten der NATO — Flagge der NATO Generalsekretär …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • L’Organisation du Traité de l’Atlantique Nord — Flagge der NATO Generalsekretär …   Deutsch Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”