Prospects for the UN

In the Opinion page article "Half-Steps Overstep in Yugoslavia," Dec. 2, the author questions the relevance of United States membership in NATO; I too question this. NATO was formed to protect Europe from Soviet aggression. The cold war has ended. The Soviet regime has dissolved and so should NATO.

The prospect of NATO functioning to "prevent and suppress `instability' in Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union" seems to be a waste of time and money. The US and other NATO members would be wise to discard NATO and concentrate their resources on the United Nations or the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe (CSCE) in a collaborative effort for peace and stability. Katharine E. Sneary Harrisonburg, Va.

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