THE ROLE OF THE NORTH ATLANTIC UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA ASSEMBLY BERKELEY PREPARED FOR THE SUBCOMMITTEE ON EUROPEAN AFFAIRS OF THE COMMITTEE ON FOREIGN RELATIONS BY THE FOREIGN AFFAIRS AND NATIONAL DEFENSE DIVISION LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 47-319 JULY 1979 Printed for the use of the Committee on Foreign Relations U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE WASHINGTON: 1979 FOREWORD In September of 1977, I attended for the first time a meeting of the North Atlantic Assembly. My dominant impressions were two-fold: First, that the Assembly provides a valuable means for the exchange and reconciliation of views among parliamentarians of the NATOmember countries; second, that the Assembly's potential contribution in this regard is not being fully realized. To fulfill this potential, I sensed that improvements were needed both in Assembly procedures and in the composition and participation of country delegations, perhaps most importantly that of the United States. As a first step toward the goal of constructive reform, I requested that the Congressional Research Service conduct a study to elicit and analyze a range of proposals. Prepared by Stan Sloan, a CRS Specialist in European Affairs, this report offers in my judgment a useful guide for those interested in strengthening the Assembly's role as a substantial institution of the Atlantic Alliance. Holding this goal myself and having become one of the Assembly's elected officials, I intend to take the earliest opportunity to begin serious discussion, among my colleagues in the Senate and among Assembly members, concerning the Assembly's future, which I hope can be made one of increasing impor tance. JOSEPH R. BIDEN, JR., Chairman, Subcommittee on European Affairs. (III) |