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NATO DMs discuss terror, Russia, Balkans BRUSSELS - U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, fresh from a visit to the war front in Afghanistan, was joining NATO allies Tuesday for a look at ways the 19-nation alliance can contribute more to the war against international terrorism. The defense ministers, at their two-day winter meeting here, were expected to call for studies on how NATO can better fight terrorism and curb weapons of mass destruction, a senior alliance official said. The meeting is Rumsfeld's first at NATO since the Sept. 11 attacks in New York in Washington, and fellow defense ministers were eager to hear his views on the next step in the fight against terrorism. It is also the first chance for allied defense ministers to talk with a top American official since the United States announced its intention to abandon its 1972 Anti-Ballistic Missile treaty with Russia, a subject that worries many of Washington's friends. NATO has invoked Article 5 of its founding treaty, declaring that the attacks on the United States in September should be treated as an attack on all 19. But the alliance has had no front-line role in the war in Afghanistan and none is envisaged. Though NATO's 1999 strategic concept points to terrorism and the spread of weapons of mass destruction among the major threats facing NATO in the future, the alliance is still heavily geared toward fighting wars of territorial defense and not the shadowy forces of terror. The defense ministers were expected to task the alliance with developing NATO's effectiveness in this fight, as well as ways to stop the proliferation of chemical, biological and nuclear weapons, a senior NATO official said. Russian Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov, also in Brussels, will be talking with NATO about plans for closer relations between former the adversaries. Rumsfeld met with Ivanov separately Monday night. Earlier this month, NATO foreign ministers instructed alliance officials to begin setting up a new council where Russia could join the allies in discussion, planning and even decision-making. The council is expected to be set up by next spring. This week, the defense ministers were to begin considering what subjects the new NATO-Russia council might cover, the senior official said. Also on the ministerial agenda is the Balkans, where the alliance is leading about 60,000 troops in three separate military operations, in Bosnia, Kosovo and Macedonia. The ministers will be looking at ways to make the Balkans operations more efficient to reduce their size. http://www.russiajournal.com/news/rj_news.shtml?nd=1492 ==^================================================================ This email was sent to: [email protected] EASY UNSUBSCRIBE click here: http://topica.com/u/?a84x2u.a9WB2D Or send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] T O P I C A -- Register now to manage your mail! http://www.topica.com/partner/tag02/register ==^================================================================
