International Organizations

Libya showed that the Europeans “successfully took on more responsibility through NATO, not the EU”

By Kenneth Weinstein, Real Clear World

From Kenneth Weinstein, Real Clear World:  What we saw in Libya is the emergence of something akin to warfare for the networked age: the full-fledged emergence of shifting coalitions of the willing based on participating nations’ domestic political calculations and military readiness.

Merkel’s Moment

By Margarita Mathiopoulos, the International Herald Tribune

From Margarita Mathiopoulos, the International Herald Tribune:   Leadership of the European Union from the beginning has fallen on Germany and France — Konrad Adenauer and Charles de Gaulle, Giscard d’Estaing and Helmut Schmidt, Helmut Kohl and François Mitterrand. Now it is Angela Merkel and Nicolas Sarkozy

Romania to withdraw police officers from Kosovo

By the AP

From the AP:  Romania’s top defense body has decided to withdraw its police force from Kosovo.

Germany’s Woeful Security Council Record

By Ralf Neukirch, Spiegel

From Ralf Neukirch, Spiegel:  March 17 of this year. That was the day on which the Security Council passed its Resolution 1973 on Libya, which called for the implementation of a no-fly zone and the use of military force to protect the civilian population. All Western and African members of the council voted in favor […]

Greece to cut participation in NATO, EU military missions

By the Athens News

From the Athens News:  Greece will significantly reduce its participation in Nato and EU military missions due to the economic crisis in the country, National Defence Minister Panos Beglitis announced on the sidelines of an informal EU defence ministers’ Council held here on Friday. 

Are the Franco-British defence treaties bad for NATO?

By Benoit Gomis, defensemanagement.com