Multilateral Force
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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 missles. 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 MLF idea was mocked in the song "The MLF Lullaby" by satirist Tom Lehrer in which he sang:
So sleep well, my darling, the sandman can linger,
We know our buddies won't give us the finger.
Heil--hail--the Wehrmacht, I mean the Bundeswehr,
Hail to our loyal ally!
MLF
Will scare Brezhnev,
I hope he is half as scared as I.
[edit] References
- Solomon, James. The Multilateral Force: America's Nuclear Solution for NATO (1960-1965). (Abstract) [1]
- Kennedy, John F. News Conference 51. [2]
- JFK Library Releases 1963 White House Recordings
