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U, S. OVERSEAS MILITARY BASES
(Memos for NSC from Executive Secretary, same subject, dated
January 14 and February 14 and 2h, 1958)
General Cutler briefed the Council in considerable detail
on the contents of the Nash Report, which he described as a remarkably fine, comprehensive and detailed study, and one which should
be most useful to appropriate operating personnel as a source of
information and guidance. On the other hand, there were only a few
significant issues which the Planning Board had thought should be
brought to the Council's attention and on which the Planning Board
had made recommendations.
(A copy of General Cutler's briefing note
is filed in the minutes of the meeting, and a copy is likewise at-
tached to this memorandun. )
When General Cutler had finished his briefing, he read the
main thesis of the Nash Report, summarizing Mr. Nash's statement on
the present and future need for the base system, the comments of the
Planning Board, and bheir recommendation that the National Security
Council accept the Planning Board statement as to the validity of the
thesis on the present and future need of an overseas base system. He
read the Planning Board's recommendation as follows:
"The tremendous changes in weapons technology will not, in
the immediate future, alter the need for substantially our
present overseas base system. Most probably for at least
five years, this system will remain essential (a) to maintain and disperse our deterrent to general war; (b) to main-
tain tactical forces to deter and cope with local aggression;
and (c) to support foreign policy objectives.
In fact, a
small net expansion of our base system may be required, at
least initially, to accommodate new weapons and to meet new
Soviet offensive techniques."
Pointing out the proposed changes of the Joint Chiefs of
Staff--to wit, that the term "in the immediate future" in the second
line should be changed to read "for the foreseeable future" and that
the term "tactical forces" in line 7 and the word "small" in line 9
should be omitted--General Cutler inquired of General Taylor whether
he felt strongly about the desirability of incorporating the changes
proposed by the Joint Chiefs. General Taylor replied that he personally did not. The President intervened in the discussion that fol-
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lowed, to state that after all, the members of the National Security
Council were not prophesying columists whose views were valid as to
the length of time that we would need our present overseas base system. He therefore suggested that the above recommendation be revised
to indicate that the situation was going to change progressively and
rapidly over the next ten years, and that we should conduct a review
of our base system each year.
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