United Kingdom

China tells EU to end arms ban

By Andrew Rettman, EUobserver

From Andrew Rettman, EUobserver:  Chinese leader Wen Jiabao has bluntly told the EU to drop its ban on arms sales. He made the call in his opening remarks to top EU officials Herman Van Rompuy and Jose Manuel Barroso at a summit in a stately home in Brussels on Thursday (20 September). "I have to […]

Why Britain Does Not Share ‘Europe’ Vision

By Julian Lindley-French

A couple of days ago in Riga I sat down with some very serious, senior Germans to discuss Britain and the EU. They simply could not for the life of them understand why Britain does not get the German ‘vision’ for Europe.

UK, Denmark suggest NATO meeting on Afghan attacks

By AP

From AP:  Britain and Denmark have called for a meeting of NATO countries to discuss how to tackle insider attacks against allied troops by Afghan forces. British Defense Secretary Philip Hammond said Thursday that such attacks, which have killed 51 international service members this year, will be addressed at a NATO defense ministers meeting Oct. […]

Air Marshal Sir Christopher Harper chosen to lead NATO’s International Military Staff

By NATO

From NATO:  [T]he Chiefs of Defence of the 28 NATO nations elected Air Marshal Sir Christopher Harper of the United Kingdom as the new Director General of the International Military Staff (DGIMS) at NATO Headquarters.

BAE-EADS merger would advance Europe’s military goals

By Adrian Croft, Reuters

From Adrian Croft, Reuters:  Merging Britain’s BAE Systems with EADS to create a global aerospace and defence giant would be a significant boost to European leaders’ ambitions for a more efficient defence industry.

ls Europe becoming more reliant on the US for its defense?

By Julian Lindley-French, the New Atlanticist

From Julian Lindley-French, the New Atlanticist:  [G]iven Europe’s strategic retreat/pretense the only outstanding issue is the relevance of Europeans to America’s grand strategy. If none then both NATO and indeed Europe’s future defense will fail.

US increasing cyber cooperation with key allies

By John Reed, Killer Apps

From John Reed, Killer Apps:  The Defense Department has reached what Pentagon officials describe a key agreement with some of the United States’ closest international allies to share information in the cyber realm.

NATO Secretary General on impact of 9/11 on transatlantic alliance

Repost from Anders Fogh Rasmussen, NATO:  [Eleven] years ago today in the United States, terrorists killed nearly three thousand men, women and children. Citizens of 25 NATO Allied and partner countries died that day.

Cyber Weapons: A New Kind of Warfare

By the Editors of the New York Times

From the Editors of the New York Times:  [F]aced with rising intrusions against computers that run America’s military systems and its essential infrastructure — its power grid, for instance, and its telecommunications networks — the military here (and elsewhere) sees disruptive software as an essential new tool of war.

Why Anglo-Polish Relations Need a Reset

By Julian Lindley-French

They call it the ‘Davos of the East’, the Krynica Economic Forum. It must be a mark of Europe’s desperate economic straits that I have been invited to speak at this huge economics conference. Thankfully, the question posed by my old friend Andrew Michta, Director of the German Marshall Fund Warsaw was closer to home; […]