Approach to Spain .
The despatch of a military mission to Spain by the United States is a piece of realism which so far from' being deprecated. as it was by a British Cabinet nervous of the reactions of its party's doctrinaires, should be unreservedly welcomed. On strategic grounds the exclusion of Spain from a Western Euro- pean defence system is fantastic, and no political argument for such exclusion will hold water for a moment. No one is asked to express, or to feel, enthusiasm for General Franco's adminis- tration—though any possible alternative might provoke less. There is no doubt that the great majority of Spaniards prefer the ills they have, even if they definitely think them ills, to an exchange for others that they know not of. And to spin argu- ments that would at one and the same time justify Tito, or for that matter Salazar, and condemn Franco might cause even practised casuists some exercise of mind. . There are signs, however, of changes in two quarters—in Spain itself and in public opinion regarding Spain"; on both an article by Vernon Bartlett (a recent visitor to Spain) on -a later page will be found salutary and instructive. Another article, in Tuesday's Times, contrasts the excellent morale of the Spanish armed forces with their lament- able deficiencies of equipment. Assistance from the United States can go far to remedy this, though Atlantic Treaty countries must have first call on American production. The best thing for Spaniards themselves will be closer association with democratic countries. The American mission, though itself strictly technical, may be a first step in that direction.
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