WESTERN EUROPE: Guilt Forgiven

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Last week, eight years after the defeat of Mussolini, Italy's role as an Axis aggressor was formally forgiven by a majority of her former enemies and present friends. By a simple declaration, the U.S., Britain, France and seven other nations annulled 29 clauses of the 1947 peace treaty, including the clause that indicted Italy for its war guilt. Also abandoned were the clauses that limited Italy's army to 250,000 men, its navy to 25,000 sailors and a handful of warships, its air force to 350 planes, its cavalry to 200 tanks, its ordnance to non-atomic weapons. With U.S. aid, Italy is now expected to develop sizable air force and tank units.

The decision was sure to bring a protest from Russia & Co. against "unilateral treaty revision." In reply, the West would simply point to Russia's own little buildup of the armed forces of such ex-enemy nations as Hungary, Rumania and East Germany in defiance of treaties.