Dateline NATO

Male voice 1: This is Dateline NATO [Theme song playing] Male voice 1: This program is produced for radio in the headquarters of United States Navy Admiral Charles K. Duncan. [Rainelle] Barger: This is [Rainelle] Barger reporting from NATO headquarters in Norfolk, Virginia. Is the Tropic of Cancer

a realistic boundary for NATO's southern limit? The Soviet's military buildup, and the efforts by the Alliance

to deter this large Soviet power boost, has made this question of boundaries a common topic for NATO's leaders.

In the original treaty, the Tropic of Cancer was established as the southern boundary, but with growing emphasis on

resource imports from around the world and the advent of submarines with nuclear capabilities, an enlargement of NATO's territory

had been considered in recent years. At a press conference during his visit to NATO's Norfolk headquarters, United States Chief of Naval Operations, Admiral Elmo Zumwalt,

was asked to comment on the subject. Attending a conference with the Chief of Naval Operations was Admiral Charles K. Duncan, Supreme Allied Commander Atlantic.

Both admirals had this to say on the subject. Admiral Zumwalt: Well, let me say that, it's very hard for me to forecast, and I'll ask Admiral Duncan who has NATO responsibilities which I do not,

to comment on this more specifically. It's very hard I think, to forecast how a group of that many nations might come out on any specific issue. It's very obvious to any Navy man

that the more you can pool allied forces to ensure control of the vital sealines of communication,

the better off you are. And it's very obvious with Europe dependent today for 45% of it's fuel on the Persian Gulf and would

depend, be dependent for 90% of its fuel and we're left, by the early eighties, dependent for 50% of ours, [four fifths], from the Persian Gulf that the South Atlantic is a very critical area.

Now for that much in general, I'll ask Admiral Duncan what he would add. Admiral Duncan: Well, I think I would only add that the treaty boundary, itself is all bound up into the meaning of

the treaty and commits all the nations to take action if any of the countries or ships within this treaty boundary are attacked,

therefore, I would think it rather unlikely that they would open up the actual treaty boundaries.

And what I had been pressing for, and I hope that I will succeed in, is following up on Admiral Zumwalt's remarks, impressing on

them that NATO interests vital interests lie outside the NATO treaty area as defined in the original treaty.

Someone must worry about functions. He mentioned the amount of oil. You hear different figures, but I believe that currently

about 50% of Europe's oil comes around the Persian Gulf and if they close off the North African oil even more will come

around the Cape of Good Hope. Also, the treaty boundaries were laid down in a day before the nuclear submarine

or the ballistic missile even existed and NATO then, in a sense you could say the, a conflict might be

contained within certain areas. Well the boundaries at sea as you mentioned, mean nothing to a Navy and nor in the air, of course to an aircraft. And it is true that I have been very interested,

and I have spoken at every opportunity of NATO recognizing its responsibilities outside of its area and placing

those responsibilities on someone and facing up, you know, to the plans part. To repeat myself, I would not take a guess or not speculate that the basic treaty

would be reopened because this just brings on a great many complicated questions. [Theme music playing] Male voice: Dateline NATO is written and produced by the Radio and

Television Section of the Public Information Office of NATO Supreme Allied Commander Atlantic, with headquarters in Norfolk, Virginia.

Male voice 2: In Boston, Massachusetts, Dateline NATO is heard over radio WEEI, one of 500 military, commercial, and public broadcast members of the Dateline NATO family in 29 countries worldwide. [Theme music plays and ends]