Chapter 684 Establishment of NATO

Alan Wilson didn't care about Ridgway, he was more concerned about who would be the deputy commander-in-chief. If he guessed correctly, there were not many candidates, and even fewer suitable ones. Could Montgomery really be allowed to come?

Alan Wilson even thought that it was impossible to recommend de Gaulle, but he expected that London would not agree. London takes the blame. In fact, Washington hates de Gaulle even more than London.

At this time, London was indeed looking for candidates for the current position. Although it was a deputy position, the British were not prepared to give up the candidates to others. The problem was that there were almost no suitable candidates. Except for Montgomery and other candidates, William Joseph Sly Tom is also a candidate.

But William Joseph Slim was now the Chief of the Imperial General Staff, and he was also not very suitable.

Alan Wilson had no problem with this choice. Marshal Slim was familiar to everyone, especially the Mountbatten family, Lieutenant General Mountbatten's subordinates in Southeast Asia. If it had not been for Mountbatten's firm support at that time, Marshal Slim would have been marginalized long ago.

It's just that this is not something he can decide. Considering several marshals with army background, London is not suitable to serve as Ridgway's deputy. But you can't choose from the navy. The task of fighting the Soviet Union really has little to do with the navy, and the marshal of the Royal Navy is more difficult to serve than the army.

After careful discussion, a candidate gradually emerged, which is also in line with the current guiding ideology of the British Empire to pay more attention to the air force. Air Marshal Charles Porter! Currently, the United Kingdom is fully committed to developing its strategic air force. The appointment of Charles Porter can express the United Kingdom's current combat policy to the United States.

It was not until much later that the candidate for NATO deputy commander in London was decided and informed to American and British staff in Paris.

"It's him!" Sir Ismay, who had already arrived in Paris, received this reaction after informing Alan Wilson of the candidate.

"What?" Sir Ismay couldn't help but asked when he heard this reaction, "Do you think there is something wrong with this appointment?"

"No, except for a few field marshals, he is also a good candidate. And now that we have nuclear weapons, Air Marshal Porter's theory will no longer be troubled by accuracy."

Alan Wilson remained honest to his immediate superiors, while Charles Porter was actually a loser in the war.

He and Air Marshal Arthur Travers Harris produced an analysis of the bombing of Germany. Charles Porter advocated precision bombing. Air Marshal Arthur Travers Harris advocated and bombed Tokyo. Li Mei is almost the same.

The German air force was much more powerful than Japan's. In broad daylight, it was simply impossible to carry out the precise bombing of the enemy's economic and political centers as Douhet envisaged. Under the fierce attack of Me-109 fighter jets, the British bombers were unable to protect themselves. How could they find the target and accurately drop bombs?

Porter had to change daytime precision bombing to night precision bombing, but this did not improve the situation at all. Pilots flying at night were so confused by the fire net composed of searchlights and anti-aircraft guns that they were completely unable to distinguish the bombing targets. Rumors gradually spread from the military that the British Air Force bomber force could not successfully destroy the target.

His successor, Arthur Travers Harris, changed the so-called precision bombing and targeted strategic bombing at important cities in Germany. Cities such as Hamburg, Korn, and Dresden were all included in the strategic bombing. The effect Of course it is obvious, except that Germany suffered heavy civilian casualties.

"Sir, will Air Marshal Charles Porter resent us civil servants?" Alan Wilson asked in a low voice. The loss of ground for Air Marshal Charles Porter's precision bombing theory stemmed from the investigation launched by Whitehall.

Whitehall sent civil servants to investigate the bombing effects during the original debate between the two air force chiefs. They found that only one percent of the bombers reached their targets over the heavily defended Ruhr.

On nights with bright moonlight, only one of the four British attacks could hit an area within five miles of the target; on nights without moonlight,

Things got worse, with only one of about twenty sorties hitting within five miles of the target. It can be concluded from this that the British Air Force's bombing hit rate is indeed astonishingly low.

"Probably not!" Ismay also knew that the investigation launched by Whitehall quickly caused Charles Porter to lose power.

But now and then, there were no nuclear weapons, but now they are. Considering the lethality radius of nuclear weapons, Air Marshal Charles Porter's precision bombing theory has another use.

Now that the candidate has been decided, this means that there is generally no problem with the emergence of NATO. There is no need to consider the ideas of other countries. Both the United Kingdom and the United States can decide on this matter and just wait until the 25th to formally sign the conditions.

The moonlight is bright and clear at night in Paris. The top floor of the Woodpecker Pictures headquarters belongs to the private territory of a few strong women. No one else can come in. The three women gather around the balcony and communicate with each other.

The man they share as husband is in this city, and he might come over soon.

"Are all men interested in war?" Hedy Lamarr said lazily, sitting on a recliner. "Is a world war coming soon?"

"How do I know?" Ingrid Bergman couldn't help but smile, "But I heard it was a military alliance of fourteen countries. Britain originally wanted to fight for Spain, but Washington did not agree."

"Allen said it was because Mexico had changed its tension with the United States for the first time since the revolution. The Mexican government has always been hostile to the Spanish government and wants to compete for the influence of Spanish-speaking countries."

Ingrid Bergman nodded and said helplessly, "The national struggle has always been so disgusting."

"Disgusting? Isn't Mexico's behavior the same as the United States' previous behavior?" Greta Garbo said with a cold smile, "You should be able to see that every time Ellen mentions the United States, there is an implicit dissatisfaction. .”

Or it would be better to call it impotent rage, but due to their relationship, Greta Garbo changed the term. On the one hand, she was also disappointed with Ingrid Bergman's usual observation skills. They were both from Sweden, so they couldn't just be satisfied with just a few words of praise, right?

The three of them chatted for a while. In the parking lot of Woodpecker Pictures, a car slowly stopped. The familiar person walked with a heavy load and approached the loyal territory step by step. They were all facing this direction. The three women could see it clearly.

Sometimes, as a man, you have to face difficulties, especially in front of women, and you have to show your role as the backbone. Alan Wilson believed that he had done it both for the country and personally.

Sir Ismay was surprised that Alan Wilson looked so depressed every day.

"Every time I think that the world will fall into a confrontation between two major camps, I don't know whether this is right or wrong." Alan Wilson showed concern for the country and the people to his boss. It cannot be said that his opponent is too powerful, except The nuclear bombs Ingrid Bergman, Hedy Lamarr and Greta Garbo are not petite and difficult for ordinary people to deal with. It's hard for any ordinary man to live alone, let alone three living together.

Sir Ismay was unaware of this fact, but accepted Alan Wilson's explanation of psychological stress.

By the time Charles Porter arrived in Paris, Ridgway had completed his voyage halfway around the world. This marks the arrival of NATO's main power holders.

Charles Portal was responsible for Britain's atomic energy efforts after the war, in other words the development of nuclear weapons. Coupled with the fact that he was originally an air marshal, his appearance does reflect the fact that Britain currently attaches great importance to the air force.

After meeting with Li Qiwei, the two had a frank exchange and clarified several points of consensus. The most important was Article 5. The contracting parties agreed that an armed attack on one or more contracting states in Europe or North America should be regarded as an attack on all contracting states. attack.

The States Parties therefore agree that in the event of such an armed attack, each State Party shall, individually and jointly with other States Parties, take such action as it deems necessary, including the use of force, in the exercise of its right of individual or collective self-defence recognized in Article 51 of the Charter of the United Nations, Assist the attacked country or countries to restore and maintain security in the North Atlantic region.

Such armed attacks and all measures taken as a result shall be reported immediately to the United Nations Security Council, which shall terminate as soon as the Security Council takes the necessary measures to restore and maintain international peace and security.

On August 25, 1952, in Paris, the capital of France, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, which brought together 14 member states, was formally established. Ridgway became the Commander-in-Chief of NATO, and British Air Marshal Charles Porter became the Deputy Commander-in-Chief of NATO.

This military alliance, which currently gathers fourteen countries, has officially appeared in front of the whole world, but in Alan Wilson's eyes, this has been a full three years late. As for future development, he hopes that everything will go smoothly.

On the same day, Moscow Pravda launched a fierce attack on the emergence of the North Atlantic Treaty, saying that the United States' move would place the world in confrontation and have an impact on the peaceful world.

Mere noises from the East naturally cannot stop the free world from singing and dancing. All NATO member states speak highly of this organization and believe that it is the cornerstone of maintaining world peace.

The NATO headquarters building is also filled with an atmosphere of unity at this time. Many European countries really believe in this military alliance. I believe this is the only way to ensure their existence.

"When the day comes when France withdraws, I guess the expressions on the faces of representatives from various countries will be wonderful." Alan Wilson murmured in his heart. Of course he was also happy. Germany was on the front line, and the main strategic air force was deployed in France. Britain would have more room for maneuver. This is the biggest result that can be achieved at present.