It is a real honor to pay tribute to the men of the New England Naval Air Reserve, and to convey to you the thanks of a grateful people - the people of Massachusetts and New England, in fact all of us in all of the 48 states, who are able to sleep easier at night with the knowledge that you stand ready to respond to any emergency call. We are deeply thankful for the fighting spirit with which you have kept your units ready for action - we are deeply grateful for the patriotic devotion with which you stand prepared to defend your country - and we are deeply appreciative of the sacrifices you have made - sacrifices of time and effort, pleasure and profit, sleep and comfort - in order to help assume the heavy military burdens of this great and grateful nation.
We are also grateful to your families and fiancés for the sacrifices they have made - the weekend plans they have cancelled, the schedules they have re-arranged and the endless waiting they have endured and will endure still more should an emergency arise. "They also serve," wrote the poet John Milton, "who only stand and wait."
But it would not be surprising if some of you, in the ranks as well as in the audience, have been asking yourselves: what are all of these sacrifices for? Is there still any need for all of this military might? Doesn't the "spirit of Geneva", about which we have all heard so much in recent months, make it possible to relax a little bit, to cut down at least on the hardest sacrifices - and thus possibly even to spend a few weekends at home with our families?
Those questions are natural enough in view of the surface trends of the past few months. The President - for whose complete recovery, I might add, we all pray - came back from Geneva with the report that the leaders of the Soviet Union had assured him "earnestly and often" that that nation "intended to pursue a new spirit of conciliation and cooperation in its contacts with others." The American people were told that there was "evidence of a new friendliness in the world". Secretary of State Dulles went even further. He thought the Russian leaders "indicated at Geneva…the genuine desire of peace"; and he assured us that "the war danger has further receded", and that "an era of peaceful change" could be on its way.
In other portions of their talks, the President and his Secretary of State were more guarded and less optimistic - particularly in comparison with the glowing statements made by other political leaders.
Some skeptics asked whether there were any fine deeds to accompany these fine words - and they asked what, after all the shouting had died down and all the pleasantries had been exchanged, actually had been accomplished at the Big Four Meeting in Geneva. But even these skeptics were for the most part hushed on August 13 when Moscow announced a reduction in the Soviet Armed Forces of 640,000 men. Manpower, after all, was not only the bulwark of Russian military might but the root of her political and diplomatic power as well. Communist Poland, Hungary, Rumania, Albania and Czechoslovakia followed the Soviet Union's lead - as it seems they quite frequently do - and announced cuts in the size of their armed forces. These cuts, said the Communists, were made "with a view to promoting the relaxing of international tension and establishing confidence among the nations" - and they were made possible, the Tass Communique went on to say, because "recent developments … show that a certain relaxation of international tensions has been achieved."
With such an attitude of sweetness and light suddenly transforming those whom we had but a short time ago considered our menacing enemies, it is difficult indeed for anyone in this nation - which has no thought of aggression and no desire for war - to raise doubts about the sincerity and the objectives of the new Russian approach. But surely we know in this country that it is folly to "cry peace, peace, when there is no peace." And surely we know that too often behind the soft smile of sweetness there lie the sharp teeth of aggression.
The facts of the matter are that, although Communist diplomatic notes may be couched in more gentlemanly tones - those gentlemanly tones have brought us no closer to real agreement over a system of nuclear inspection, over the reunification of Germany, over the defense of Formosa, over the rights of the satellite nations trampled behind the Iron Curtain, or over any other major issue which threatens the peace and security of the world. We cannot afford to denounce whatever progress is being made or appear to be stirring up distrust and hostility unnecessarily. But neither can we afford to permit the beam of our own peace propaganda spotlights to turn inland and blind us to the grim realities of the world situation. We cannot afford to permit the roar of our appeals for world peace to deafen our ears to the harsh discordant sounds of the conflicts that refuse to disappear. In the jungles of Indo-China, in the straits of Formosa, in the desert no-man's-lands of the Middle East, in the seething cities of North Africa, and in Europe itself, the surface calm of the "Geneva spirit" could be exploded at any time by Communist deception, subversion or aggression. Mr. Dulles told us that the Geneva Conference brought about a "transformation in the relations between the Soviet Union and the Western powers." But we have yet to see any real evidence of that transformation.
Surely we cannot seriously consider the recent announcements of reductions in the Communist armed forces as real evidence. Even if the Soviet Union and her satellites actually do cut military manpower to the extent announced to the world - (and, when no non-Communist nation is able to ascertain the size of those armed forces and it is never revealed, there is a vast difference between announcing a cut as a sign of peace-loving intentions and then actually making that cut) - but even if those cuts are made, this will have little or no effect on the relative strength of the Communists in Europe. General Gruenther, Supreme Allied Commander in Europe, estimated last spring that the Soviet Union alone had "in being, active forces" of about 4 1/2 million men. Of these, 2 1/2 million are in 175 infantry and armored divisions. The satellites add another 1 1/2 million men and 80 divisions to this, for a total in Europe alone of 4 million men in 255 infantry and armored divisions. When security, naval, air and other forces are added to these, Communist military manpower in Europe totals some 6 1/2 to 7 million men, stretched more than half-way across the continent from Moscow to Berlin. Obviously this is many, many times as large a force as all 15 NATO nations together could ever hope to put in Europe - and thus a reduction of 768,000 men or 10 to 13% in the forces of the U.S.S.R. and her satellites will hardly affect the balance of power from that point of view.
The free world wearily and earnestly hopes for the "relaxation of international tension" which Moscow claimed had made these meaningless reductions in armed strength possible. But let us not confuse "relaxation of tension" with just plain "relaxation". And I am fearful that it is the latter which causes the Russians to smile - a smile which may even be stifling a laugh at Western confusion and ineptitude. For while we have not yet even fulfilled the limited strength goals of NATO, much less even begun to match the overwhelming manpower of the Communists, the West is already cutting, transferring and withdrawing - not just in public announcements, not for increased efficiency, and not (unlike the Soviets) for transfer to labor camps or collective farms to strengthen the national security - but instead in a fashion that is clearly reducing our strength.
Great Britain, our strongest partner in NATO with only 800,000 in service, is cutting its forces by at least 100,000 - or 12 1/2 % - of that already small number. France, with half her ground forces already in North Africa protecting her colonial interests, is diverting still more troops from those she had previously committed to NATO in commitments she has never met. Greece and Turkey, far from uniting to strengthen their defenses against a mutual enemy, are instead sharpening their claws over a mutual friend: Cyprus.
And so I commend you, our "weekend warriors", for standing by your posts and your nation, for refusing to relax or to be deceived. Our nation, far from forgetting about you, needs you more now than ever before.
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As I quoted to you earlier, "They also serve who only stand and wait." But you have been standing and waiting long enough this evening - thank you for permitting me to be here with you and my warmest wishes - and thanks - to you all.
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