The problem of sharing nuclear responsibility in NATO during the presidency of Lyndon Johnson

This article examines different ways of sharing nuclear responsibility in NATO between the US and its European allies that were considered by the Johnson Administration. It is built on analysis of American diplomatic documents. The USSR's launching of Sputnik in 1957 shifted the nuclear balance between the two superpowers. Together with the elaboration of a new strategy of "flexible response" by the US, it caused serious doubts in the countries of Western Europe about the reliability of American nuclear guarantees to their security. These doubts forced the European members of NATO to demand more participation in decision-making on nuclear matters in the Alliance and to develop their own nuclear forces as a supplement to the US nuclear deterrent. To lessen these fears and to stop the process of nuclear proliferation, the US administration proposed sharing nuclear responsibility with its European allies through the creation of the Multilateral Force (MLF). American policymakers considered the MLF a tool to strengthen the defense of Western Europe and at the same time to preserve American control over the launching of nuclear missiles. Additionally, it would give West Germany a reasonable level of participation in the management of NATO's nuclear weapons. Despite considerable Allied efforts to reach a consensus, the MLF project was developing very slowly. Although West Germany joined with the US in favor of the MLF, the project did not enjoy widespread support among the other members of NATO. Eventually, the Johnson Administration abandoned the MLF project because of lack of support in Europe, criticisms in the US Congress, and the priority of signing of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty that demanded cooperation with the USSR. Instead of the MLF, Secretary of Defense McNamara proposed the creation of a Select Committee of Defense Ministers to consider expanded Allied participation in nuclear planning. McNamara's proposal met with membership approval (except for the French) at a meeting of the NATO Permanent Representatives in June 1965. Progress in discussions on nuclear matters slowed as France provoked a crisis within the European Economic Community that developed in parallel with frequent French statements about reorganization of the Alliance with the aim of bringing forces and installations in France under French command and freeing French forces from NATO control. The Select Committee, however, was not affected and held its first formal meeting on November 27, 1965. At that meeting, several working groups were established, including one on nuclear planning. Paradoxically, France's withdrawal of its military from NATO in 1966 made it easier for NATO to adopt a decision about creation of a permanent mechanism for consultations on nuclear matters in the Alliance. In December 1966, the Nuclear Defense Affairs Committee and the Nuclear Planning Group were established, and they began to function on a permanent basis in 1967.

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