Category: Blogs

Why the U.S. Still Needs Pakistan

By Shuja Nawaz

When Pakistan’s first military ruler Field Marshal Mohammed Ayub Khan soured on the relationship with the United States, he released his memoirs in 1967 entitled “Friends not Masters” to describe what Pakistan sought in this relationship. Two years later and in the middle of celebrating his “Decade of Development,” he was forced out of office […]

Kyrgyzstan asks NATO for help in protecting its borders

By the AP

From the AP:  Kyrgyzstan’s president has appealed for assistance from NATO to bolster the country’s borders and improve the capacity of frontier troops. Kyrgyz President Roza Otunbayeva’s office said she met Tuesday with NATO envoy to Central Asia, James Appathurai, to discuss military co-operation.  (photo: Reuters)

NATO SecGen: “All 28 Allies make shared sacrifices”

By Anders Fogh Rasmussen, NATO

From Anders Fogh Rasmussen, NATO:  Over the years, your country’s military forces have done an exceptional service for freedom, peace and democracy.

Update: NATO activities in Libya on May 9

By NATO

Did NATO Leave 62 Africans to Die at Sea Off Libya?

By Vivienne Walt, Time

From Vivienne Walt, Time:  Did NATO pilots allow 62 Africans fleeing Libya to perish on the high seas because their mission did not include saving desperate migrants or because NATO’s tangled bureaucracy had failed?

The U.S. and Pakistan after Bin Laden

By Don Snow

As the details of the stunning American Navy SEALS raid that killed Osama bin Laden last Sunday filter into the public view, one controversy seems to be brewing much more obviously and openly than any other. That concern is the role of Pakistan in providing the sanctuary in which bin Laden apparently existed for upwards […]

Dutch army losing all its tanks

By the AP

From the AP:  The Dutch government will cut 12,000 military jobs, or more than one in six of all armed forces personnel, as part of spending cuts aimed at balancing the budget by 2015, officials said Friday. Prime Minister Mark Rutte said the country was making "difficult choices," but still expects to be able to […]

NATO carried out 1,400 operations and captured 500 insurgent leaders in 90 days

By Patrick Quinn, the AP

From Patrick Quinn, the AP:  NATO said Monday that it has significantly weakened the Taliban insurgency, capturing or killing thousands of militants in Afghanistan during the past three months. It also said that the Taliban failed in an attempt to carry out attacks against key government buildings over the weekend in the southern city of […]

NATO leaders attend Allied Reach Exercise 2011

By NATO

From NATO:  Admiral [Giampaolo] Di Paola, in a joint Press Conference with the Polish Minister of Defence, HE Bogdan Klich, highlighted the main topics of discussions of the ongoing exercise in Poland’s Capital.

Norway to reduce forces in NATO’s Libya operation

By Reuters

From Reuters:  Norway will scale down its role in NATO-orchestrated air strikes on Libya after its current three-month commitment ends on June 24, Defence Minister Grete Faremo said on Monday.