1 October 2011 — Stop NATO
- Bombed-Out Sirte Is A Humanitarian Disaster Zone
- Missile Defense Agency Test Integrates U.S.-NATO Interceptor Missile Systems
- Europe: NATO Allies Augment U.S. Interceptor Missile Deployments
- Interceptor Missiles: Raytheon At 30-Year Yield Highs
- Director General Of NATO International Military Staff In Mongolia To Strengthen Ties
- Ten Years On, Afghan War Is U.S.’s Second Vietnam
- Kosovo Serbs: ‘If The Americans Want To Kill Me, Then Go Ahead’
- Brunei: U.S. Continues Naval Exercises In Southeast Asia, Malacca Strait
- Britain Pressures Australia To Boost Forces In NATO Gulf Of Aden Operations
- Baltic Sea: NATO Tests ‘Readiness And Capabilities’
- NATO Chieftain Joins Campaign Against Pakistan
- Pakistan Must Turn To China, Russia In Face Of U.S., NATO Threat
Bombed-Out Sirte Is A Humanitarian Disaster Zone
http://rt.com/news/sirte-humanitarian-disaster-city-785/
RT
September 30, 2011
Bombed-out Sirte is a humanitarian disaster zone
Thousands of civilians are fleeing the Libyan city of Sirte en masse, as fighting between Gaddafi loyalists and the former rebel forces reaches a climax.
The two-week siege has given rise to a serious humanitarian situation in the city of 100,000 people. The number of casualties and wounded among the civilians is unknown, but those who have escaped the city report of thousands of deaths.
Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF – Doctors Without Borders) reported this week that they have been in touch with medical personnel in Sirte and they say hospitals in the city are overflowing with the wounded. They also confirmed that medical supplies are scarce.
Reports say most of the refugees are heading for the comparative safety of the desert, leaving behind their belongings and livelihoods. Hundreds of families are streaming out of the city through its western entrance.
As they pass through, NTC troops are cross-checking them at block-posts in an attempt to eliminate all possible Gaddafi supporters.
According to NATO’s own figures, the bombing of Sirte resulted in 427 ‘key hits’ from August 25 to September 29, so it can be said that at least that number of buildings have been destroyed within the city.
On top of that, anti-Gaddafi forces are shelling the city with everything they have at their disposal – tanks, artillery and Grad rockets – causing more death and destruction.
There are reports on Twitter that yesterday alone, more than 20 civilians – men, women and children – died in NATO bombings in Sirte and its defenders say they have video footage to prove it.
The refugees say Sirte is critically short of water, food and medicine, and there is now a very real threat of a new humanitarian disaster emerging.
Aid workers are rushing to the area, but continued fighting is preventing access.
‘The information we get from people getting out of Sirte is the food supply is very low, there is no water and no electricity and access to healthcare is very difficult,’ said Dibeh Sakhr, a spokesperson for the International Committee of the Red Cross, which is close to the area.
Sakhr confirmed that Red Cross personnel have been trying to get to Sirte since last week. The organization does have all the humanitarian assistance that might be needed but so far they do not have the necessary security guarantees.
In the meantime, NTC commanders claim Gaddafi’s spokesman, Moussa Ibrahim, has been captured in Sirte. It is not clear how this was achieved since NTC forces have failed to capture the city. Despite repeated attempts, they have so far only managed to secure control of Sirte’s airport and have suffered large casualties from sniper fire.
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Missile Defense Agency Test Integrates U.S.-NATO Interceptor Missile Systems
http://www.defpro.com/news/details/28357/?SID=63714cc5ce205f28b8816a53af662eea
Defence Professionals
September 30, 2011
MDA Ground Test Demonstrates Phased Adaptive Approach
The U.S. Missile Defense Agency (MDA) successfully completed a ground test involving several distributed Ballistic Missile Defense System (BMDS) elements. Data collected during the test, conducted September 12-16, demonstrated BMDS Phase 1 capabilities of the Phased Adaptive Approach to defend European allies and deployed forces from ballistic missile threats by simultaneously executing multiple theater engagements.
This event was designated Ground Test Distributed-04d (GTD-04d) Part 1. Participants included Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense (BMD), a forward-based AN/TPY-2 X-band transportable radar, the Command, Control Battle Management and Communications (C2BMC) system, and other BMDS assets.
Successful integration testing was accomplished for the first time in an operational environment between BMDS Phased Adaptive Approach Phase 1 capabilities and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Active Layered Theater Ballistic Missile Defense (ALTBMD) system.
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Europe: NATO Allies Augment U.S. Interceptor Missile Deployments
Aviation Week
September 30, 2011
Missile Defense Momentum Builds In Europe
By Robert Wall, Amy Svitak, Amy Butler
-Astrium Space Transportation, the prime contractor for France’s missile defense program, has already proposed a plan to validate the underlying technology for a €1 billion missile defense system dubbed Exoguard. The unsolicited proposal aims to achieve a flight test of an in-space interceptor around mid-decade at a cost of €225 million. Such a system would ‘wisely complement the U.S. Phased Adaptive Approach in terms of interception capability.’
-Separately, ThalesRaytheonSystems says it has completed factory system tests of NATO’s Air Command and Control System (ACCS), which eventually is to grow to have a BMD role.
London, Paris, Washington: Europe will never match the U.S.’s passion for missile defense; but step-by-step, Washington’s NATO partners are moving to build up capacities that could augment and expand the shield the Pentagon is creating.
Progress will be slow and incremental, though, and — in terms of budget expenditure — will remain a mere fraction of what the U.S. commits to the mission area.
Nevertheless, there is clear momentum in Europe to do more, even if the main motivator is industrial base considerations: France wants to ensure that its missile sector does not lose out to U.S. rivals in providing interceptors to European and other forces, and the Netherlands wants to sustain advanced naval radar capacities.
In the NATO context, budgets are less important than symbolic steps, and this is underscored by the members’ recent move to award a €2.5 million ($3.4 million) contract to an industry team led by Science Applications International Corp. (SAIC), which will define the first elements of a plan that will enlarge the theater missile defense system to cover NATO territory and populations in Europe. Last year, NATO decided that it wanted to protect territory instead of just deployed forces. It was a long political battle, so this study effort — no matter how paltry the funding — has significant implications for the alliance’s future.
Work under the year-long effort is to be performed at the NATO Consultation, Command and Control Agency in The Hague, and ‘the results will then be taken forward for implementation in the NATO command-and-control network to broaden the capabilities of the NATO commander well beyond those demonstrated recently in missile defense testing between the U.S. and NATO elements last month,’ the organization said in announcing the contract.
Alessandro Pera, manager for the Active Layered Theater Ballistic Missile Defense (ALTBMD) program — the command, control and communications backbone for the alliance’s missile shield — says that under the new contract award, ‘we will work as a team with our industry and national partners, in close consultation with both the NATO military and relevant NATO committees, to ensure we get the job done.’
The NATO contract follows a November 2010 decision at the Lisbon summit to provide the alliance with an additional layer of capability to protect Europe.
Meanwhile, the Netherlands, which has had a longtime interest in a missile shield, is pressing ahead to build up its own capacities. The Dutch defense ministry plans to expand the capabilities of the Thales Smart-L radar on Dutch frigates to take on BMD roles. The program’s value is estimated at €100-250 million, including logistics support and spares.
Other European navies using the sensor may follow the Dutch lead.
Dutch Defense Minister Hans Hillen notes that the Smart-L effort would help address the BMD sensor shortage within the NATO alliance. Citing NATO’s decision last year to take a more expansive approach to BMD, Hillen says Smart-L could give the ALTBMD command-and-control backbone the required long-range target-detection information. The sensor also could provide accurate launch-point detection analysis to help identify where a threat originates.
The Netherlands has already carried out a sensor trial for the expanded role in cooperation with the U.S. Navy. The move does not include the purchase of Raytheon Standard Missile SM-3 interceptors.
Both hardware and software modifications to the combat management system are needed. All four De Zeven Provincien-class frigates would be modified to ensure that two can be deployed, even as one is in maintenance and the fourth is being readied for operations.
Thales is due to complete a series of studies to prepare for the acquisition of the upgrade in the third quarter of 2012. The goal is to have the first frigates ready for operations in 2017. All four should be upgraded by the end of that year.
Although the Netherlands is leading the program, other Smart-L users, including the German navy and Denmark, have been monitoring the effort. France also has shown interest in the system, Hillen said in a letter to legislators.
France also wants to upgrade its Aster 30 interceptor to give it a basic BMD capability, although a formal contract has not been awarded.
In addition, Astrium Space Transportation, the prime contractor for France’s missile defense program, has already proposed a plan to validate the underlying technology for a €1 billion missile defense system dubbed Exoguard. The unsolicited proposal aims to achieve a flight test of an in-space interceptor around mid-decade at a cost of €225 million. Such a system would ‘wisely complement the U.S. Phased Adaptive Approach in terms of interception capability,’ according to Astrium spokeswoman Astrid Emerit, who adds that the French armaments agency is reviewing the Exoguard proposal.
In the meantime, Emerit says the high-level requirements definition called for under the recently awarded NATO contract is to be conducted independently of national contributions to the expanded missile defense architecture. However, ‘the next steps will give an opportunity to incorporate the systems provided by the nations — early warning, sensors and interceptors — into the NATO architecture and under NATO command and control,’ she says.
Gen. Mark Welsh, commander of U.S. Air Forces in Europe, acknowledges the difficulties that NATO faces in sorting out burden-sharing for the missile defense mission.
‘The cost of this terrifies the countries,’ he tells Aviation Week.
…
‘There are lots of things they can do if they would look at things with a little bit broader scope than they have,’ says Welsh. ‘Many of the nations can contribute in ways, for example, in offensive operations. Many have capabilities that would allow us to go in and strike a missile site before it launches an attack, if NATO ever made that decision.’
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An actual flight test pitting a German Patriot terminal defense battery against a short-range missile target is scheduled for November, according to Welsh. During the trial in the eastern Mediterranean, a U.S. Aegis cruiser will provide target tracking.
Raytheon, meanwhile, is still fighting to win a foothold for its Standard Missile 3 (SM-3) in Europe. The company continues its push to persuade continental navies to embrace the SM-3 Block 1B for missile defense roles, and says it has largely validated the dual-mode data link that would be key to the concept.
The data link would feature both S-and X-band capability — the former to support the Aegis radar system used by the U.S. and others, and the latter for the Smart-L/APAR (active phased array radar) combination used, for instance, by the Dutch navy…
Raytheon’s current goal is centered on gaining the backing of the Netherlands, Germany and Denmark.
On the industry side, Thales in the Netherlands would play a key role in integrating the missile with the radar system, says Kremer. The Dutch also could be instrumental if a missile-pooling concept being proposed for European navies take off.
The SM-3 Block 1B recently flew its first intercept test but failed to hit the target. Kremer says the review group has just begun the data analysis and large amounts of telemetry are available.
Separately, ThalesRaytheonSystems says it has completed factory system tests of NATO’s Air Command and Control System (ACCS), which eventually is to grow to have a BMD role. Development of ACCS suffered large delays owing to software development problems, but company officials say the baseline capability is now ready for trials at NATO’s Test and Validation Facility and at national sites.
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Interceptor Missiles: Raytheon At 30-Year Yield Highs
http://seekingalpha.com/article/296986-raytheon-at-30-year-yield-highs
Seeking Alpha
September 30, 2011
Raytheon At 30-Year Yield Highs
Clay King
Raytheon Company (RTN) is a defense contractor providing a host of services to the military. Perhaps its most famous product is the Patriot Air and Missile System used by 12 countries, which includes the U.S. and five NATO countries.
…The shares currently yield 4.3% and trade at a PE of only 7.5. Estimates are for earning to grow between 8-10% over the next five years. The primary risk to the growth rate are budget cuts from governments world-wide.
..Earnings have trended upward except for the 4-5 year period from the late 1990s to 2004. The stock declined 50% in 1999 due to the exit from the rapid transit business, revenue shortfalls and lower than expected margins within several of its divisions. In short, the company tried to do too much within a short time frame, which resulted in large charge-offs. The problems are well behind the company as the last seven years of growth resumes the historical upward earnings trend.
…The dividend has increased each year since 2004. Except for the stagnant period, dividend growth has been steady and solid over this 31 year period.
…
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Director General Of NATO International Military Staff In Mongolia To Strengthen Ties
http://www.nato.int/cps/en/SID-FBC2D145-BC28AFFF/natolive/news_78594.htm
North Atlantic Treaty Organization
September 30, 2011
Director General of NATO International Military Staff meets senior officials in Mongolia
-This visit reinforced NATO’s ongoing engagement with Mongolia. In particular, LtGen Bornemann took the opportunity to discuss NATO-Mongolian cooperation at the strategic level and Mongolia’s current and future involvement in international crisis management.
Ulaanbaatar (Mongolia): Lieutenant General Juergen Bornemann, Director General International Military Staff (DG IMS), concluded a three-day visit to Mongolia’s capital today at the invitation of the Mongolian Minister of Defence.
During the visit, Lt Gen Bornemann and the delegation from NATO HQ had the opportunity to meet with the Presidency and the Security Council of Mongolia, as well to visit the Mongolian Institute of Strategic Studies.
The programme included meetings with H.E. Luvsanvandan Bold, Minister of Defence, Mr Surenkhuui Baasankhuu, Vice Minister of Defence, and Lt.Gen. Tserendejid Byambajav, Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Mongolia and Mr. Ulziisaikhan Enktushvin, Secretary of the National Security Council.
This visit reinforced NATO’s ongoing engagement with Mongolia. In particular, LtGen Bornemann took the opportunity to discuss NATO-Mongolian cooperation at the strategic level and Mongolia’s current and future involvement in international crisis management.
Mongolia’s contribution to the ISAF mission in Afghanistan was also discussed and Mongolia’s intention to increase its contingent was welcomed by DGIMS.
Current threats and security challenges were also covered, including cyber attacks and terrorism as well as the current global financial crisis and its effects on defence planning.
LtGen Bornemann also met with Brigadier General Boldbaatar Zagdsuren, the Director of the Defense University of Mongolia, where DGIMS was invited to a deliver a speech to the directing staff, in which he gave an overview on the current NATO agenda.
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Ten Years On, Afghan War Is U.S.’s Second Vietnam
http://english.ruvr.ru/2011/09/30/57287457.html
Voice of Russia
September 30, 2011
What will it take to make the U.S. and NATO quit Afghanistan?
Boris Volkhonsky
– The U.S. and NATO operation, instead of bringing peace and stability to Afghanistan, eradicating drug production and terrorism, has only resulted in the exact opposite.
The U.N. General Secretary has released a tri-monthly report on ‘The situation in Afghanistan and its implications for international peace and security’. According to the report, the average monthly number of violent incidents in Afghanistan for 2011 was 2,108, up 39 per cent compared with the same period in 2010. In the three summer months alone there were more than 7,500 such incidents – 2,626 in June, 2,605 in July and 2,306 in August.
As stated in the report, ‘Armed clashes and improvised explosive devices continued to constitute the majority of incidents. The south and south-east of the country, particularly around the city of Kandahar, continued to be the focus of military activity and accounted for approximately two thirds of total security incidents.’
Likewise, the number of civilian deaths also has increased. In the first six months of 2011 there were 1,462 civilian deaths, an increase of 15 per cent over the same period in 2010. 971 civilian deaths were recorded from June to August. The anti-government forces were linked to 77 per cent of civilian casualties and pro-Government forces to 12 per cent. The remaining casualties could not be attributed to either party to the conflict.
Air strikes remained the leading cause of civilian deaths by pro-Government forces, killing 38 civilians in July, the highest number recorded in any month since February 2010. The report has to acknowledge that ‘civilian casualties from air strikes and night raids continued to generate anger and resentment among Afghan communities towards international military forces.’
The U.N. General Secretary’s report also indicates that Afghan society is facing increasing problems regarding drug production, human rights, governance, reconciliation, economic development, etc. ‘The reporting period witnessed considerable political volatility and disconcerting levels of insecurity for the Afghan people amid a process of transition to Afghan leadership and responsibility for security,’ states the report.
As reported by a BBC correspondent in Kabul, ‘the document does not make comforting reading for NATO or the Afghan government,’ while Taliban attacks are falling in places where NATO is putting in troops, violence and insecurity is spreading to other parts of the country.
In fact, the U.N. General Secretary report only confirms the conclusions that have been expressed by unbiased observers for several years by now. The U.S. and NATO operation, instead of bringing peace and stability to Afghanistan, eradicating drug production and terrorism, has only resulted in the exact opposite.
Now, this once again brings us to the most crucial question, what’s next? Is the U.S. administration going to stick to its promise and pull the troops out of Afghanistan in 2014, and if so – what’s going to happen in the power vacuum?
Definitely, the present government is incapable of coping with the widening scope of problems, even with all the massive U.S. and NATO military presence. Simply relabeling the Western military as ‘advisors’ as was done in Iraq, would not change anything.
What really could be a solution is the engagement of Afghan neighbors into the process of reconciliation. But with the existing tensions between the West and Iran, between Pakistan and India, the escalating tensions between the U.S. and Pakistan, joint efforts by the neighbors seem much less probable than their confrontation over the issue of who is to play the leading role in post-2014 Afghanistan.
And more so, the U.S. is highly unlikely to acknowledge the obvious fact that Afghanistan has already become a ‘second Vietnam’. If in November 2012 a Republican wins the presidential race he (or, she, if – Inshallah – it is Michele Bachman or Sarah Palin) may easily discard Barack Obama’s promise to pull out the troops. But if Obama retains his seat in the White House, the situation will be a lose-lose one for him – he will have to either break his promise, or acknowledge defeat. In both cases, he is sure to lose at least face, or probably even the faith of his countrymen.
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Kosovo Serbs: ‘If The Americans Want To Kill Me, Then Go Ahead’
http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/world/2011/1001/1224305086199.html
Irish Times
October 1, 2011
Kosovo Serbs dig in as border dispute turns bloody
Daniel McLaughlin in Jarinje
-Serbs accuse Nato troops, specifically Americans, of using live ammunition to disperse people who were protesting against ethnic-Albanian Kosovo police efforts to take control of customs points along the border with Serbia – a frontier that local Serbs insist they will never recognise.
-‘Serbs are disappearing everywhere,’ he adds. ‘Croatia, Macedonia, and they are under pressure in Montenegro. What could we possibly hope for from the Albanians?’
Mileva Premovic and her neighbours while away the afternoon in the shade of a broad tree. The unseasonable warmth makes it hard to imagine that the green Kapaonik mountains, rising up a few miles away in Serbia, will soon be white with snow and busy with skiers.
It would also be hard to believe that bullets were fired and blood shed here just a few days ago, were it not for the scars that blight Kosovo’s border zone.
Nearby fields are burned black from recent rioting and, just over the rise, US soldiers move warily behind a huge earth barricade and glinting coils of barbed wire. They warn off anyone approaching their position while they are still hundreds of metres away, their rifles clearly showing.
‘It was frightening to see the demonstrators running, tumbling over each other to get away,’ Premovic says of Tuesday’s clashes between Serbs and Nato troops. ‘There were hundreds of local people, young and old, and I could hear gunfire – tap-tap-tap. If the Americans want to kill me, then go ahead, I have nowhere else to go. But this has always been Serb land; there have never been Albanians here.’
Serbs accuse Nato troops, specifically Americans, of using live ammunition to disperse people who were protesting against ethnic-Albanian Kosovo police efforts to take control of customs points along the border with Serbia – a frontier that local Serbs insist they will never recognise.
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Tuesday’s violence injured at least six Serbs and four Kfor soldiers, ramped up tension in northern Kosovo, and prompted the postponement of EU-brokered talks between Belgrade and Pristina to solve practical problems stemming from Kosovo’s 2008 independence declaration.
The Belgrade government, like most Serbs, refuses to recognise the sovereignty of Kosovo, which from 1999-2008 was run by the UN after Nato bombing forced Slobodan Milosevic’s forces to withdraw from the region…
Many Serbs fled Kosovo after the 1998-1999 war and the 100,000 that remain are divided between almost entirely Serb northern regions and enclaves in the south where they are surrounded by Kosovo’s 90 per cent ethnic Albanian majority.
Serbs in northern Kosovo refuse to acknowledge the authority of the Pristina government and still look to Belgrade for political leadership, protection and finance.
In a bid to tighten control of the rebellious north, Pristina dispatched special police to take over custom points in July. Local Serbs resisted and killed one of those policemen.
The row has rumbled on, and this week’s clashes came when Kfor troops tried to clear barricades built by Serbs across local main roads and to block one of the many rough tracks that they use to bypass official checkpoints and enter Serbia.
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About a dozen Serbs sit in the sun, eating, drinking and making gentle fun of the Greek Kfor troops watching them from behind barbed wire. The Serbs insist they are neither radicals nor puppets of the local mafia, but patriots who refuse to be dictated to in their ancient homeland.
‘We want to remain part of Serbia.
‘I live on my grandfather’s land, but this situation means I have to hope my kids find a future in Belgrade or Europe. That’s the sad truth,’ says Sladjan Radosavljevic from the nearby village of Leposavic, home to many of the protesters.
‘Serbs are disappearing everywhere,’ he adds. ‘Croatia, Macedonia, and they are under pressure in Montenegro. What could we possibly hope for from the Albanians?’
Offering food and strong home-made rakia to visitors, local man Stanko Lakic brandishes a fork and insists it is the protesters’ deadliest weapon.
‘Every river has a source and every nation has its birthplace. The birthplace for every Serb is Kosovo.
‘And what happens when a river loses its source? It disappears,’ he says.
‘But Serbs will never leave Kosovo.
‘No price and no amount of violence will force us out.’
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Brunei: U.S. Continues Naval Exercises In Southeast Asia, Malacca Strait
http://www.navy.mil/search/display.asp?story_id=63014
Navy NewsStand
September 30, 2011
US, Royal Brunei Navy Return to Sea for CARAT 2011 Exercise
By Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Robert Clowney, Task Force 73 Public Affairs
-CARAT is a series of annual, bilateral maritime exercises between the U.S. Navy and the Armed Forces of Bangladesh, Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand.
MUARA, Brunei: The U.S. and Royal Brunei Navies began their 17th annual Cooperation Afloat Readiness and Training (CARAT) Brunei exercise Sept. 30, with an opening ceremony at Muara Naval Base.
‘This is a key year for our exercise, as it marks the first time in two years both the U.S. and Royal Brunei Navies are returning to sea together,’ said Rear Adm. Thomas Carney, Commander of the U.S. Navy’s Task Force 73…
Approximately 600 U.S. Sailors are participating in CARAT Brunei 2011. Two U.S. ships, the guided missile destroyers USS Dewey (DDG 105) and USS Pinckney (DDG 91), are participating.
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U.S. Marines will join Bruneian Land Forces for urban operations and first aid training.
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At sea, both U.S. and several Royal Brunei Navy ships for joint helicopter operations, search and rescue practical scenarios, division tactics, surface gunfire drills and more. Participating U.S. aircraft include the P-3C Orion, and the SH-60 Seahawk.
CARAT is a series of annual, bilateral maritime exercises between the U.S. Navy and the Armed Forces of Bangladesh, Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand.
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Britain Pressures Australia To Boost Forces In NATO Gulf Of Aden Operations
The Australian
October 1, 2011
Australians asked by British to boost anti-piracy force in the Gulf of Aden
By Mark Dodd
The Gillard government has been asked to boost its military contribution to the NATO-led counter piracy mission in the Gulf of Aden, Britain’s senior naval commander said yesterday.
Admiral Sir Trevor Soar, who also holds a senior command role in NATO, said he wants more Australian help combating the pirate menace off the Horn of Africa.
Admiral Soar confirmed the appeal during a speech to defence experts, part of a seminar series hosted by the Australian Strategic Policy Institute think tank.
‘From an Australian perspective, I would welcome more Australian participation – although there are issues about how to deal with captured pirates, and the release of pirates.
‘But, I think your (Australian) interests lie in that region (Gulf of Aden) and I would really welcome greater participation – and I said this to (Chief of the Royal Australian Navy, Rear-Admiral) Ray Griggs,’ Admiral Soar said.
Australia is a non-NATO member.
But in 2009…Canberra committed a missile-armed frigate and two P3C-Orion surveillance aircraft to the international counter-piracy coalition.
It also dispatched several senior liaison officers to serve at the Bahrain-based fleet headquarters.
…
In April, the missile-armed HMAS Stuart interdicted a Yemeni-flagged dhow, arrested 15 Somali pirates and released three foreign crew who were being held hostage.
…
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Baltic Sea: NATO Tests ‘Readiness And Capabilities’
North Atlantic Treaty Organization
Allied Command Transformation
September 16, 2011
NATO continues to deliver more capable NATO senior staff and commanders to conduct operations
Between 26 and 30 September 2011, NATO will conduct exercise ‘STEADFAST PINNACLE 2011’ (STPE11) in Riga, Latvia. The exercise has been scheduled by Allied Command Operations and is being conducted by Allied Command Transformation.
The exercise is built on a fictitious scenario with special operational requirements to model likely crisis situations. The exercise is closely connected to exercise STEADFAST PYRAMID11, also conducted in Riga during 19-23 September.
Latvia is a valued member of NATO who makes a vital contribution to the Alliance and particularly its mission in Afghanistan. The multinational exercise is…rising NATO`s profile in the region…Such level NATO exercise takes place in the Baltic States for the first time.
This is NATO…exercise that assures the readiness of Latvia to develop the joint operational capability as a host nation and to benefit from these exercises by improving abilities to work with other NATO nations and other key regional partners that will be useful in participating in ISAF and other multinational contingency operations around the world.
STPE11 serves as a building block in the preparation of NATO commanders to exercise command and control during the planning, preparation and conduct of NATO military operations…The seminars will also expand the participants’ knowledge about NATO policy, procedures, command and control capabilities, and allied doctrine which governs the planning and conduct of NATO military operations.
NATO regularly exercises to maintain readiness to provide the early establishment of NATO military presence. The NATO exercise programme is under continual review. Holding regular exercises – across the Alliance nations – provides tangible proof of NATO’s readiness and capabilities.
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NATO Chieftain Joins Campaign Against Pakistan
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2011101story_1-10-2011_pg1_7
Agence France-Presse
September 30, 2011
NATO presses Pakistan on ‘terrorist safe havens’
BRUSSELS: NATO’s chief piled pressure on Pakistan on Friday to step up the fight against ‘terrorists’ enjoying safe havens in the border region with Afghanistan.
Amid growing US pressure for Pakistan to take action against al Qaeda-linked extremists, NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen called for a ‘positive engagement’ from Islamabad to ensure stability in Afghanistan.
‘We encourage the Pakistani military and the Pakistani government to do its utmost to fight extremism and terrorism in the border region,’ Rasmussen said at a defence forum hosted by the European Policy Centre think tank.
‘It is really a security problem for our troops in Afghanistan that terrorists have safe havens, and that’s a fact, in Pakistan,’ he said. ‘We have to deal with that and it’s in our mutual interest to deal with that.’
‘That’s a reason why we have conveyed that clear message to Pakistan authorities.’
The Pakistani government and opposition leaders on Thursday closed ranks against increasing US pressure for action against Haqqani network, refusing to be pressured into doing more in the war on terror.
The outgoing head of the US military, Admiral Mike Mullen, accused the country of ‘exporting’ violent extremism to Afghanistan.
Mullen also charged that the ISI was actively supporting the Haqqani network blamed for an assault on the US embassy in Kabul.
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Pakistan Must Turn To China, Russia In Face Of U.S., NATO Threat
The Nation
October 1, 2011
Response to menacing US postures
By Mohammad Jamil
-The fact remains that the US is losing ground in Afghanistan, and whenever there is a militant attack on its sensitive areas, its civil and military leadership start pointing fingers and making accusations. The leadership had gone berserk after the September 13 militant attack, which knocked the bottom out of America’s pretence of its grip over Afghanistan.
-About 10 years since the US-led invasion of Afghanistan, its south and east are still veritably under the sway of Taliban and other insurgent groups, notwithstanding the tall claims of success by the US/NATO forces. It is in this backdrop that America is trying to make Pakistan a scapegoat for its failures.
The nation was told that the objective of the All Party Conference (APC) was to send a message to the US, in the wake of threats and allegations about the ISI’s involvement, in the recent attack near its embassy in Afghanistan.
However, the conference adopted a 13-point resolution, which has in fact diluted the ‘message’. The resolution, signed by the leaders of all political parties, did not mention the Haqqani network that was called a ‘veritable arm’ of the ISI by US Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Admiral Mike Mullen, nor did it make any direct reference to US pressure on Pakistan to take military action against the Haqqanis. While the military leadership, including ISI Chief Lt General Shuja Pasha, rejected the allegations levelled by top US officials, it said that Pakistan wanted to maintain cordial relations with all the countries of the world on the basis of sovereign equality and mutual respect.
At the start of the conference, PM Gilani had set the tone with a categorical declaration that Pakistan was in no position to accept the ‘do more’ dictation. He said: ‘Our national interest must be respected and honoured. And Pakistan cannot be pressurised to do more.’
His remarks were, indeed, stronger than the 13-point declaration. However, PML-N Chief Nawaz Sharif put some tough questions to the military leadership saying that the country had become isolated in the world and there must be some reason for it, adding that the foreign and defence policies were being designed and implemented by the ruling elite in disregard of Parliament. So, it is unfortunate that some Pakistani leaders, analysts and media men are bereft of patriotism and nationalism and do not have faith in their institutions.
Pakistan’s military leadership, too, had categorically rejected the allegations against the ISI and that it was responsible for the attack near the US embassy in Kabul. Prior to the APC, a Corps Commanders’ meeting, headed by Chief of Army Staff General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani, was held on Sunday that discussed the Pak-US rift and rejected the blames that America had slapped on Pakistan.
So it is, indeed, encouraging to see the political and military leadership on the same page, as they seem determined to meet any eventuality – be it a surgical strike similar to the May 2 episode, or any ground assault by the US/NATO forces. Though there have been ups and downs in the Pak-US relations during the last six decades, yet military-to-military relations have invariably remained intact. But with Leon Panetta as Defence Minister, the relations between Pentagon and GHQ may not remain the same.
Had our civil leadership warned the US of its resolve to retaliate in case of a recurrence of May 2-like operation at Abbottabad, it would not have adopted menacing postures. For almost a week, Panetta and Mullen have been levelling accusations against Pakistan and the ISI. However, seeing no response coming from the political leadership, General Kayani was forced to take the initiative. He said: ‘This is especially disturbing in view of a rather constructive meeting with Admiral Mullen in Spain.’
The fact remains that the US is losing ground in Afghanistan, and whenever there is a militant attack on its sensitive areas, its civil and military leadership start pointing fingers and making accusations. The leadership had gone berserk after the September 13 militant attack, which knocked the bottom out of America’s pretence of its grip over Afghanistan.
In November 2010 also, President Barack Obama had claimed that the US and its allies were breaking the Taliban’s momentum, but it appeared that the reality on ground was different. After the Lisbon Conference on Afghanistan, the leadership of the Afghan Taliban had declared: ‘In the past nine years, the invaders could not establish any system of governance in Kabul and they will never be able to do so in future.’
About 10 years since the US-led invasion of Afghanistan, its south and east are still veritably under the sway of Taliban and other insurgent groups, notwithstanding the tall claims of success by the US/NATO forces. It is in this backdrop that America is trying to make Pakistan a scapegoat for its failures.
Meanwhile, China has asked Washington to respect Islamabad’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, while fighting the war on terror. It is, of course, our trusted friend and we can count on its friendship. When asked about Mullen’s accusations, a spokesperson of the Chinese Foreign Ministry defended Pakistan, saying that it has been ‘in the forefront of international efforts against terrorism…….(and) has made important sacrifices in global fight against terrorism.’
However, Pakistan should try to get rid of the dependency syndrome and learn to live within its means; only then it will be considered an independent and sovereign country.
Having said that, Pakistan should also try to improve relations with Russia. In view of the drastically changed political landscape of the world after 9/11, Russia would understand its position, and earlier compulsions of being in the American camp.
The writer is a freelance columnist.
The New Dark Age 