Troubled Partners: Anglo-American Relations and the Battle Act in 1952

Abstract

The Battle Act, enacted on 26 October 1951, was the cause of much tension and resentment in Anglo-American relations. This controversial legislative measure, which was the result of a compromise between Congress and the Truman administration, threatened the raison d’etre of multilateral cooperation between the United States and its Western European allies in East-West trade policy. Forcing nations receiving economic and military assistance from Washington to curtail their commercial contacts with Soviet bloc countries was viewed by the Churchill government as violating the sovereignty of international trade. Thus Britain, in conjunction with the largest CoCom members — France, Italy and West Germany — sought to make the Truman administration accountable to the multilateral principles of the international export control regime. The subsequent confrontation between the United States and its partners produced a major review of the direction and scope of policy in CoCom. Yet when faced with the decision of whether or not to terminate military assistance to allies that violated the Battle Act provisions, the American government chose to preserve the unity of the Western alliance instead of placating a hostile Congress and public opinion.