Category: NATOSource

NATO Will ‘Finish Our Job’: Rasmussen Vows Renewed Efforts in Afghanistan

By der Spiegel

From der Spiegel: New NATO head Anders Fogh Rasmussen traveled to Kabul on Wednesday and assured Afghanistan that the Western military alliance would stay put “for as long at it takes to finish our job.” “Priority” was a word mentioned in almost every sentence during the Kabul visit. They stood side by side in the […]

NATO Secretary General visits Afghanistan

By NATO

From NATO: NATO’s newly appointed Secretary General, Anders Fogh Rasmussen, arrived in Afghanistan today to meet with Afghan Government leaders, United Nations representatives and the Commander of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF), in order to get a comprehensive view of the international effort . . . “NATO’s number one operational priority is Afghanistan and […]

Georgia: One Year After the August War

By the Department of State

From the Department of State: As Vice President Biden reaffirmed in Tbilisi, we continue to fully support Georgia’s NATO membership aspirations, and the right of all countries to choose their own alliances. Following the August conflict, Allies and Georgia agreed to launch the NATO-Georgia Commission and to have Georgia develop an Annual National Program to […]

Russian Subs Seen Off U.S. East Coast

By the Wall Street Journal

From the Wall Street Journal: Two Russian attack submarines were detected patrolling the waters off the East Coast of the U.S. in recent days, including one that came as close as 200 miles offshore, according to U.S. military officials . . . The senior military official said the two Russian vessels were nuclear-powered Akula class […]

Russia accuses US of rearming Georgia

By the Agence France Presse

From the Agence France Presse: Russia on Wednesday accused the United States of quietly rearming Georgia a year after Russian forces crushed the ex-Soviet state’s US-backed military and warned it would respond accordingly. “Delivery of weapons from the United States is continuing,” Deputy Foreign Minister Grigori Karasin told journalists at a briefing ahead of the […]

U.S. officials: Russia tries to ‘divide West’

By the Washington Times

From the Washington Times: “There are signs of Russian efforts to divide the West and prevent what they see as undue American influence,” said Philip H. Gordon, assistant secretary of state for European affairs. Alexander Vershbow, assistant secretary of defense for international security affairs, agreed, saying the Russians are “seeking to create divisions between the […]

Winners and Losers in SG Speech

In his first major speech as Secretary General of NATO, Anders Fogh Rasmussen placed a great deal of emphasis on reassuring Russia, but did he do so at the expense of alliance cohesion? As you can see in the video of his press conference, after Afghanistan, Rasmussen identified NATO-Russian relations as his second priority. He […]

Madeleine Albright named head of NATO’s Wise Men

NATO’s new Secretary General, Anders Fogh Rasmussen, appointed twelve experts to oversee the development of the new Strategic Concept for the alliance. The special NATO committee (popularly referred to as the group of Wise Men), will be lead by a historic female diplomat, former U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright. Her Vice Chair will be […]

The last Nato secretary general?

By the Guardian

From the Guardian: Anders Fogh Rasmussen, who is about to take the reins at the alliance, is inheriting a troubled, sidelined organisation . . . De Hoop Scheffer did his best to navigate these stormy waters, but he had neither the institutional power nor the charisma to convince the US and the reluctant Europeans of […]

Russia warns of force if more Georgia “provocations”

By Agence France Presse

From Agence France Presse: Russia on Saturday warned Georgia its military reserves the right to use force if the ex-Soviet state continues ‘provocations’ in the Caucasus, one week ahead of the first anniversary of their 2008 war. The Russian defence ministry accused Georgia of firing several times with mortars and grenades over the last four […]