5 May 2011 — Stop NATO
- Perfectly Acceptable For U.S. And NATO To Kill Children
- Jamie Shea: NATO Partnerships Needed To Maintain West’s 500-Year World Dominance
- Where Does NATO’s “Boundary” Lie?
- Report: NATO Enforces Naval Blockade Against Eritrea
- Seychelles: NATO Steps Up Military Operations In Indian Ocean
- Serbia Could Join Collective Security Treaty Organization: Official
- Romania: U.S. Missile Deployment Pact Expected This Autumn
- Romanian Corporal Killed In Afghan Attack
- Afghanistan: South Korean Base Comes Under New Rocket Attack
- Namibia: U.S. Horn Of Africa Unit Trains On Other End Of Continent
Perfectly Acceptable For U.S. And NATO To Kill Children
english.peopledaily.com.cn/90001/90780/91343/7371448.html
China Daily
May 6, 2011
Killing kids a crime whatever the reason
The author is deputy editor of China Daily US edition
When news about the NATO air strike killing Libyan leader Muammar Gadhafi’s youngest son and three grandchildren emerged on Saturday evening, US President Barack Obama was wining and dining at the annual White House Correspondents Dinner in the Washington Hilton Hotel.
He and NBC Saturday Night Live head writer Seth Meyers were sharing jokes with hundreds of journalists and celebrities.
Obama offered his prayers to the people in Alabama who had just suffered a devastating tornado, but mentioned nothing about the NATO air strike in Tripoli, where Gadhafi’s three grandchildren all under the age of 12 were killed.
Which is not surprising, after all; US leaders have never apologized for the children killed by US military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Rather than feeling outraged by the killings, Obama was having a good time on Saturday evening. He made fun of billionaire Donald Trump who was sitting among the audience and he laughed when Seth Meyers lampooned Trump.
While Trump, who has been questioning Obama’s birth certificate for months, is indeed the biggest joke in US politics these days, Obama looked very much like a comedian that evening.
After the air strike, some US officials immediately tried to shirk responsibility by describing the bombing as a NATO operation. Yet anyone who knows how NATO functions knows it is impossible for the US to dodge responsibility in this way.
That evening, the journalists who cover the White House and the US President failed to accept their responsibilities. Instead of promptly questioning the US president about the killing, they partied with the Hollywood stars that were also attending the dinner.
Killing three young children was sadly no news to them.
TV networks, such as CNN, which devoted days to reporting a rape case in Libya a month ago, have also shown little interest in digging into the children’s deaths.
On the contrary, they broadcast the wild celebrations by Libyan rebels when they heard the news.
The headlines on the Washington Post and New York Times websites mentioned only the killing of Gadhafi’s son, not his three grandchildren. The message seems to be: It is a crime for others to assassinate and kill children, but it is perfectly acceptable when it comes to the US and NATO.
Nevertheless, comments left by readers were mostly condemnation.
There is no doubt that both the US and NATO still believe that military operations are great solutions to some of the world’s problems. However, what has happened in Iraq and Afghanistan has proved they are wrong. Victory cannot be won by relying on military force. The drone attacks that have been expanded under Obama are triggering more anti-US sentiments in that part of the world.
Eliminating someone is a relatively easy task for the mighty US military, but wiping out the influence of that person’s ideology and spirit is a far tougher job than it seems.
Both Obama and NATO should condemn the killing of the three children, even if their last name was Gadhafi. That is the only way not to lose more hearts and minds.
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Jamie Shea: NATO Partnerships Needed To Maintain West’s 500-Year World Dominance
www.udel.edu/udaily/2011/may/global-agenda-shea-050511.html
University of Delaware
May 5, 2011
How Europe sees American power
NATO official sees changing world roles for U.S. and European allies
by Jerry Rhodes
-”Emerging great powers will act as great powers do,” Shea said. “China, India and a reemerging Russia will all want to define the world as they think it should be.”
With the presence of these new entities, the West, for the first time in 500 years, will lose its dominance in world affairs, Shea noted.
-”Supporting democracy in North Africa will take a very long-term investment, and it is going to take years of efforts to prevent Iran from having nuclear weapons.”
Despite a long history of military and political cooperation, particularly during World Wars I and II and the Cold War, Americans and Europeans do not always see eye-to-eye on their respective responsibilities in dealing with world events.
Jamie Shea, NATO’s deputy assistant secretary general for emerging security challenges, addressed these issues and the importance of continued cooperation between America and its allies during his talk, “The View from Europe,” as part of the 2011 Global Agenda speaker series held Wednesday evening, May 4, in Mitchell Hall.
Shea, who served as the North Atlantic Treaty Organization’s spokesperson after the collapse of the Soviet Union and the end of the Cold War, said that each new century seems to bring an attitude of hope for positive change.
The historical reality, he noted, is usually quite different.
“The 21st century will have as many shocks as the last century,” Shea said. “The new generation will face these challenges the same way that we faced ours.”
While new economic powerhouses take their place on the world stage, their behavior in world affairs is likely to mirror that of their predecessors, Shea said.
“Emerging great powers will act as great powers do,” Shea said. “China, India and a reemerging Russia will all want to define the world as they think it should be.”
With the presence of these new entities, the West, for the first time in 500 years, will lose its dominance in world affairs, Shea noted.
While the United States will continue almost by necessity to maintain its leadership role, it also will need determined and persistent support from its friends, he said.
“It’s going to be a real hard slog to get results,” Shea said. “Supporting democracy in North Africa will take a very long-term investment, and it is going to take years of efforts to prevent Iran from having nuclear weapons.”
Another misconception, Shea noted, is that elections will provide new messiahs that will produce overnight results in dealing with current problems.
“Change does not really occur,” Shea said. “President Obama has not been any softer on terrorism than George Bush, as events of the last week prove.”
With American support of NATO rising from 50 percent to 75 percent since the organization was founded, Shea said the United States feels frustrated at what it views as a lack of defense efforts from its European partners.
“Some feel that America thinks Europe is a done job, that the Cold War is over and that Russia is no longer a threat, while many new NATO members in Central Europe still see a need for American guarantees,” Shea said. “Europe will have to accept that it is not first on the list of people who will be meeting [U.S. Secretary of State] Hillary Clinton in the morning.”
Shea said that there are many areas of opportunities for the United States and Europe to work together, and that while NATO should not force democracy on other nations it should definitely help to expand such movements.
“We have to ask if United States foreign aid is going where it is needed,” Shea said. “We should concentrate on helping countries whose destinies can change entire regions, like Turkey and Egypt.”
While the military role of NATO may change, immediate issues where cooperation is critical include getting the financial houses of member nations in order, working to reduce vulnerability to cyber attacks and the safeguarding of nuclear materials, he said.
“We tend to come awake at a crisis, and when crisis is over, we don’t do anything to prevent the next one,” Shea said. “We need to have more transatlantic dialog and to talk about the things we are likely to face.”
Global Agenda, now in its 10th season, is presented by the Center for Political Communication, with support from the Institute for Global Studies and the UD departments of Communication and Political Science and International Relations.
The series is moderated by Ralph Begleiter, director of the UD Center for Political Communication.
The National Agenda speaker series will be held during fall 2011.
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Where Does NATO’s “Boundary” Lie?
news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/indepth/2011-05/05/c_13860700.htm
Xinhua News Agency
May 5, 2011
Where does NATO’s “boundary” lie?
BEIJING: Diplomats from countries involved in the military campaign in Libya held a contact group meeting in Rome on Thursday. The envoys discussed how to assist the Libyan rebels fighting Muammar Gaddafi but dodged the question: Where does NATO’s “boundary” lie?
NATO last November adopted a new Strategic Concept, the alliance’s roadmap in the second decade of the 21st century, which reconfirms the commitment to defend – not attack – as the bedrock of Euro-Atlantic security.
However, just a few months later, the alliance launched its military campaign in Libya, a sovereign country, casting doubt over its commitment uttered in its new strategy.
It is widely known that NATO is a product of the Cold War…The centerpiece of the North Atlantic Treaty, Article 5, promises its major mission of “restoring and maintaining the security of the North Atlantic area.”
Following that article, the alliance did not intervene in the war between Argentina and member state Britain in 1982 over control of the Malvinas (Falkland) Islands and associated island dependencies.
The Warsaw Pact was dissolved in the early 1990s after the Cold War ended, but NATO remained.
Since then, the alliance has constantly broken through its “frontier” and looked for new opponents in the name of “strategic transformation.”
It stepped over the Europe-North Amercia defense zone for the first time in 2001 by declaring war on Afghanistan in support of the United States.
Though a moral “high ground” might be proclaimed by NATO in the Afghanistan War, which was launched just after its member state suffered in the Sept. 11 terrorism attack, it’s hard to find any excuse for the military campaign in Libya.
Some analysts say the alliance this time had been taken by some of its member states as a “tool box” to reach their political and diplomatic aims.
The frequent use of force by NATO, the world’s largest military alliance whose member states account for 70 percent of all global military spending, runs against the common aspirations for peace and development of mankind.
If not stopped, people can’t imagine the unpredictable aftermath of power politics and military interference.
In the 21st century, in the face of a crisis, mankind needs more dialogue and negotiations and no additional “international police.”
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Report: NATO Enforces Naval Blockade Against Eritrea
awate.com/nato-navy-captures-armament-filled-ship-bound-for-eritrea/
Gedab News (anti-government)
May 5, 2011
NATO Navy Captures Armament-Filled Ship, Bound For Eritrea
A small ship, originating from North Korea and carrying rockets and other armaments destined for Eritrea, was intercepted in the international waters of the Indian Ocean by international navy enforcing sanctions against Eritrea.
…
The Southern Red Sea and the Indian Ocean have been increasingly monitored by multi-national naval forces from the United States, France, Germany and a contingent on behalf of NATO specially since December 2009 when the UN Security Council passed resolution 1907 to impose sanctions on Eritrea…The sanction stipulates an arms embargo on Eritrea, as well as travel restrictions and asset frees on the regime’s political and miliary leadership.
…
The ship is now docked in one of the regional ports.
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Seychelles: NATO Steps Up Military Operations In Indian Ocean
Standing NATO Maritime Group 2 (SNMG2)
Allied Maritime Command Headquarters Northwood
29 April 2011
NATO’S latest counter piracy weapon strikes early blow
-Standing NATO Maritime Group 2 is permanently assigned to NATO. It is a multi-national Naval Group that provides the NATO Alliance with the ability to quickly respond to crisis situations anywhere in the world.
-NATO has announced its continuing commitment to counter-piracy by extending Operation Ocean Shield to December 2012.
London: Yesterday in a coordinated action between NATO’s Maritime Patrol and Reconnaissance Aircraft (MPRA) and Naval forces, armed pirates were stopped at sea and had their piracy equipment taken off them…
Recently deployed to the Seychelles by Portugal in direct support of Operation OCEAN SHIELD, NATO?s Counter Piracy mission off Somalia, and flying only its 5th sortie the P3 Orion MPRA observed a suspicious pirate whaler approximately 80 miles from shore.
…
In a classic co-ordinated military operation the Danish warship Esbern Snare, which was 120 miles away, was vectored onto the scene and tasked to investigate. As the warship approached the area, her helicopter was sent on ahead to locate the pirate mothership, known as a “whaler? – which it soon did.
The helicopter was then tasked to provide airborne cover while an armed boarding team from HDMS Esbern Snare searched the whaler.
…
The decision was made to destroy the whaler…
Commodore Bruce Belliveau, Deputy Chief Of Staff Operations in Maritime Command Northwood, the tactical HQ for OCEAN SHIELD, said “The addition of a dedicated MPRA asset providing surface search to support Op OCEAN SHIELD gives us additional reach into areas our intelligence analysis has identified as being a key route for pirates either into their operating areas or for resupply of Pirate Action Groups at sea and this decisive action has shown the pirates that our intent to keep the pressure on them is not diminishing.”
Background Information:
NATO has contributed to the international counter piracy effort off the Horn of Africa and Somali Basin since December 2008. The mission has expanded from escorting UN and World Food Programme Shipping under Operation Allied Provider and protecting merchant traffic in the Gulf of Aden under Operation Allied Protector. In addition to these activities and as part of the latest mission, Operation Ocean Shield, NATO is working with other international bodies…
Standing NATO Maritime Group 2 is permanently assigned to NATO. It is a multi-national Naval Group that provides the NATO Alliance with the ability to quickly respond to crisis situations anywhere in the world. A capable, stand-alone task group and one of four standing maritime elements that form a flexible core around which NATO can build a larger force to meet a wide range of missions that will include non-combatant evacuations, consequence management, counter terrorism, crisis response, embargo operations, etc.
NATO has announced its continuing commitment to counter-piracy by extending Operation Ocean Shield to December 2012.
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Serbia Could Join Collective Security Treaty Organization: Official
www.interfax.com/newsinf.asp?pg=7&id=241590
Interfax-Military
May 5, 2011
Serbia could join CSTO – high-ranking source
MOSCOW: Serbia is among the most likely candidates to join the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), a high-ranking military-diplomatic source based in Moscow told Interfax-AVN on Thursday.
“Serbia’s accession to the CSTO is quite possible, and consultations on this score are already under way,” he said.
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english.ruvr.ru/2011/05/05/49875036.html
Voice of Russia
May 5, 2011
Serbia may join CSTO
Serbia is one of the likeliest candidates for admission to the Collective Security Treaty Organization.
Interfax quotes a high-ranking diplomatic source in Moscow as saying that consultations are already under way and that the issue could be brought up during an upcoming CSTO meeting in June.
“The CSTO is not a frozen organization and holds the door open for anyone wishing to join it”, the source said.
The CSTO comprises Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Armenia, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.
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Romania: U.S. Missile Deployment Pact Expected This Autumn
news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/world/2011-05/05/c_13860720.htm
Xinhua News Agency
May 5, 2011
Romania hopes pact on anti-missile shield can be signed this autumn
BUCHAREST: Romanian Foreign Minister Teodor Baconschi on Thursday expressed hope that an agreement concerning the placement of a U.S. missile system in Romania could be signed this fall.
“As the experts have concluded negotiations, the agreement must be validated by policy makers and we hope to sign it this fall,” Baconschi told a public debate organized by the ministry on Romania’s involvement with the missile defense system.
Baconschi said that he held talks with U.S. Under Secretary of State Ellen Tauscher on Wednesday and they believed that the agreement should be signed at the highest level, by Romanian President Traian Basescu and U.S. President Barack Obama, or at least in their presence.
The Foreign Ministry announced late Wednesday that Romanian and U.S. delegations had finalized the draft agreement on the deployment of a U.S. missile defense system in Romania.
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Romanian Corporal Killed In Afghan Attack
www.nineoclock.ro/romanian-corporal-dies-in-afghanistan/
Nine O’Clock News
May 5, 2011
Romanian Corporal dies in Afghanistan
Romanian Corporal Constantin-Laurentiu Lixandru died yesterday in Afghanistan, after being severely injured in an attack with an improvised explosive device, Mediafax reported.
The incident happened during a patrol mission.
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Afghanistan: South Korean Base Comes Under New Rocket Attack
www.pajhwok.com/en/2011/05/05/rockets-fired-korean-prt-parwan
Pajhwok Afghan News
May 5, 2011
Rockets fired at Korean PRT in Parwan
by Farid Tanha
CHARIKAR: The Korean Provincial Reconstruction Team (PRT) headquarters came under rocket attack in the central province of Parwan, officials said on Thursday.
Several rockets, fired from an unknown direction, landed near the PRT headquarters, causing no casualties, crime branch chief, Mohammad Kabir Tordili, told Pajhwok Afghan News.
The rockets were fired by people who were recently fired by the PRT, the official said, giving no further details.
A Taliban spokesman, Zabihullah Mujahid, said the fighters attacked the PRT headquarters in Parwan. The building, housing about 200 Korean soldiers, was damaged, he said.
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Namibia: U.S. Horn Of Africa Unit Trains On Other End Of Continent
www.hoa.africom.mil/getArticle.asp?art=6543
Combined Joint Task Force – Horn Of Africa
May 3, 2011
U.S. Navy, Namibian Forces Share Explosive Safety Skill
By Petty Officer 2nd Class Timothy Wilson
CJTF-HOA Public Affairs
-The participants of the class received a certificate from U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM)…
ARANDIS, Namibia: U.S. Navy Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) technicians, from Combined Joint Task Force – Horn of Africa, teamed with the Namibian Defense Force and Namibian Explosive Control Unit police officers in Arandis, Namibia, recently for Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) Level One and International Mine Action Standards (IMAS) training.
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U.S. Navy EOD technicians began their instruction by sharing their knowledge with seven Namibian Defense Force and police personnel, from all regions of the country, and in turn, the graduates are now leading more than 20 Namibian students in order for them to take IMAS knowledge back home.
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Namibian Warrant Officer 2 Migal Kambatuku, a class instructor and police department officer, said that she did not know anything about explosive disposal before the U.S. Navy visited her country.
“Train the trainer is important because it gives us knowledge to go out and train our colleagues,” she said. “The skills we learned here will enable us to train those who were not here.”
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The participants of the class received a certificate from U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM) stating attendance of the course and proof that they have gained an understanding of IMAS EOD level one procedures.
The New Dark Age 