EDITORIAL : DISCORD IN THE ALLIANCE FRANCE, GERMANY MAKE A GOOD CASE FOR CONSULTING WITH MOSCOW ON NATO EXPANSION.

MADELEINE Albright, the new secretary of state, is learning firsthand that the NATO alliance isn't as unified as it once was.

That was evident Monday during her meetings with German and French foreign officials over what we believe are needlessly risky plans to expand the North Atlantic Treaty Organization into Eastern Europe this summer.

German Foreign Minister Klaus Kinkel supported a French proposal to have NATO's four largest nations - the United States, Germany, France and Great Britain - meet with Russia in April on ways to alleviate Moscow's concerns about expanding NATO to the East. ``We have to do everything we can to make it easy for Russia to accept NATO enlargement,'' Kinkel said.

But the blunt-spoken Albright dismissed the French proposal. ``It is the substance that interests us, not the process,'' she said.

We agree that substance is more important than process. And that's the problem. The substance - expanding NATO - raises serious questions that have not been adequately addressed.

One concern is the possibility that the expansion of NATO might cause a chill in relations between Moscow and the West and jeopardize efforts by President Boris Yeltsin and his supporters to keep Russia on a democratic path. The West might play into the hands of anti-democratic hard-liners in the former Soviet Union if it snubs Yeltsin in this issue.

Further, expanding NATO - Poland, the Czech Republic and Hungary are the prime candidates for membership - would extend U.S. and NATO military responsibilities into areas that are more difficult to defend.

The fundamental issue, however, is whether a defensive alliance created nearly 50 years ago to stop Soviet aggression is an appropriate mechanism for preserving the peace in this post-Cold War era. We believe that there is more need for economic cooperation than expanding military commitments - especially now that this nation is shrinking its defense establishment.

Indeed, Turkey, a full-fledged NATO member, complains that it has been treated by its allies as a second-class citizen because it has not been admitted into the European Union. We believe Turkey's position has merit - and strengthens the case for new economic initiatives.

The collapse of the Soviet Union presented the West with a remarkable opportunity to help make this world a freer and more prosperous place by supporting the establishment of lasting democratic institutions in Russia and other former Soviet republics. The Western allies shouldn't squander this opportunity by playing into the hands of the enemies of democracy who hope to win support from discontented Russians by convincing them that the West is their enemy.

The Franco-German proposal for direct talks with Russia is a modest step in the right direction. We can see no reason to oppose it.