From NATO: To my mind, NATO transformation is, first and foremost, about making sure we have the kinds of forces that we can deploy, with the equipment and training they need, and at a price we can afford. It’s as simple as that.

The reality is that, in NATO, we simply don’t yet have that. The yardsticks have been moved a little. But there’s a long way to go. The bottom line is this: excluding the US, NATO countries have over 2 million people in uniform. But we have trouble sustaining 50,000 or so in field. We have fleets of helicopters in the NATO inventory, but can’t find a few more for Afghanistan, because they aren’t the right kind. We are short 10 training teams – about 200 soldiers – to help create the Afghan forces that will secure their own country, but can’t seem to find the right soldiers to do this either. This is not value for money. We can do better. (photo: NATO)