HTTP://WWW.STOPNATO.ORG.UK ---------------------------
[Correction. A spokesman for NATO General Secretary Lord Robertson has informed us that the aircraft in question were surveillance planes and fighters. As such this mission doesn't qualify as a humanitarian one. Had they been bombers....] NATO to End Unprecedented Patrols Over America BRUSSELS - (Reuters) - The NATO military alliance said it was ending its unprecedented operation to patrol the skies of the United States, launched after the September 11 attacks, because U.S. air defense security had improved. NATO used seven airborne warning and control system (AWACS) planes, consisting of international crews, to watch over the skies of the United States to free up U.S. planes for the military operation in Afghanistan. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said the NATO planes would return home May 16, and expressed U.S. appreciation. "Operation Eagle Assist, as the mission was called, marked the very first time that NATO had deployed assets in direct support of operations in the continental United States," Rumsfeld said at a Pentagon briefing. "I certainly want to express my full appreciation and the appreciation of our country to our NATO allies and to the many dedicated air crews who have helped to defend our country in the immediate aftermath of Sept. 11," Rumsfeld said. The Pentagon last month reduced the number of U.S. fighter jets on round-the-clock combat air patrols over major cities, relying instead on intermittent sorties and improved security in airports and on passenger jets. The NATO planes were deployed Oct. 19 after NATO for the first time activated its mutual-defense clause, which says an attack on one member is as an attack on the whole alliance. "This decision concludes NATO's historic first deployment of assets in direct support of operations in the continental United States," said a NATO statement, released late on Tuesday. The AWACS squadron is a NATO unit rather than one formed from equipment pooled by NATO states and has crews from 11 of the alliance's 19 nations. The unit is based at the Geilenkirchen base in Germany. The alliance said the operation had ended after upgrades to the U.S. air defense system and enhanced cooperation between the U.S. civil and military authorities. During the operation, the E-3A planes were based at the Tinker Air Force base in Oklahoma. NATO said that 830 crew members had patrolled the U.S. skies for nearly 4,300 hours in more than 360 operational sorties. "This operation has been a concrete demonstration of allied solidarity," NATO said. NATO also showed its support for Washington's war on terrorism by sending a flotilla of warships to the eastern Mediterranean in October. With the British frigate Chatham as flagship, the force includes frigates from Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, Turkey and the United States, a Greek destroyer and a German refueling ship. __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Yahoo! Health - your guide to health and wellness http://health.yahoo.com --------------------------- ANTI-NATO INFORMATION LIST ==^================================================================ This email was sent to: [email protected] EASY UNSUBSCRIBE click here: http://topica.com/u/?a84x2u.a9617B 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 ==^================================================================
