Thirteen Harvard faculty members have joined a newly formed international committee of 400 prominent intellectuals to protest Soviet aggression and "conduct a battle of ideas in defense of Western values and institutions."

The members include Richard E. Pipes, now in charge of European and Soviet Affairs for the National Security Council Staff; James Q. Wilson, Shattuck Professor of Government; and Samuel P. Huntington, Thomson Professor of Government.

In a policy statement for The Committee for the Free World, executive director Midge Decter criticized the "loss of nerve within the West" and said that books, newspapers, and classrooms can contribute to the "struggle for freedom."

Stephen P. Rosen, a committee member and a reserach fellow in the Kennedy School of Government yesterday emphasized the importance of intellectual backing of foreign policy, saying, "People have learned the lessons of the 50's and 60's that military strength without the intellectual support won't be successful." He added that the group's purpose is to "provide an intellectual foundation for a more vigorous policy of containment."

"Generally, this is a group of intellectuals who think the West is worth defending," Christopher C. DeMuth '68, lecturer in Public Policy at the K-School, said yesterday, adding that most of the members believe "we have been devoting insufficient attention to defense."

The Committee has not set specific goals, although a letter sent to its members said plans include publishing and holding conferences to keep members informed.

The policy statement, signed by the members, ended with a commitment to defend the non-Communist world "against the rising menace of totalitarianism.