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http://www.iht.com/articles/72203.html [Via International Herald Tribunal] Progress at NATO The Washington Post The Washington Post Monday, September 30, 2002 -[Rumsfeld] saw to it that much of the Warsaw meeting was devoted to the subject. In fact, NATO's support would be vital to a U.S.-led campaign in Iraq, either through the participation of individual members in the military phase or collectively in postwar peacekeeping. Although the alliance has never operated outside Europe, there may soon be a precedent. Discussions are under way about NATO participation in a reorganized Afghan peacekeeping force led by Germany. All this shows that behind the sometimes angry exchanges over Iraq lies the potential for a positive transformation of NATO - one that the Bush administration should not fail to exploit. In a week dominated by dissonance between America and Europe - the poison of Germany's elections and the disharmony on Iraq at the United Nations - there was at least one sign of vitality in the trans-Atlantic relationship. A conference in Warsaw of NATO defense ministers suggested that the 53-year-old institution is finally taking steps toward making itself relevant to a post-Cold War world. Since Sept. 11, NATO has occasionally looked as if it might be withering. Its forces initially played little role in Afghanistan. That was partly because of an ill-considered Pentagon decision to exclude allies, but also because of the growing gap between U.S. and European military capabilities. The real threat that the alliance that faced the Soviet Union might become little more than a political club now seems to be inspiring attempts at resuscitation on both sides of the Atlantic. As the war on terrorism expands toward Iraq, the Bush administration should have a strong interest in nurturing and expanding the reforms. What happened last week was a small but important step toward reviving NATO as a working military organization. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld briefed the alliance's 18 other defense ministers on a proposal to set up a new reaction force, with up to 20,000 troops, that could be deployed within seven to 30 days. The force would make use of the combat-ready units NATO members now have and would be explicitly authorized for action outside Europe. That would make it far easier in the future for NATO to join U.S. forces in engagements such as that in Afghanistan. The idea was warmly received. With luck, the initiative could be approved at the NATO summit meeting scheduled for Prague in November and could be up and running in two years. No NATO force would be ready to participate in an Iraq campaign, but Rumsfeld - after disingenuously claiming that the thought of NATO in Iraq had not crossed his mind - saw to it that much of the Warsaw meeting was devoted to the subject. In fact, NATO's support would be vital to a U.S.-led campaign in Iraq, either through the participation of individual members in the military phase or collectively in postwar peacekeeping. Although the alliance has never operated outside Europe, there may soon be a precedent. Discussions are under way about NATO participation in a reorganized Afghan peacekeeping force led by Germany. All this shows that behind the sometimes angry exchanges over Iraq lies the potential for a positive transformation of NATO - one that the Bush administration should not fail to exploit. __________________________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? New DSL Internet Access from SBC & Yahoo! http://sbc.yahoo.com --------------------------- ANTI-NATO INFORMATION LIST ==^================================================================ This email was sent to: [email protected] EASY UNSUBSCRIBE click here: http://topica.com/u/?a84x2u.bacIlu 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 ==^================================================================
