NATO allies back Rumsfeld plans
Warsaw, Poland ? America’s NATO allies gave broad support Tuesday to Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld’s plans for a new multinational response force to strike quickly against threats from terrorists or renegade states.
Diplomats said the overwhelming majority of the 19 NATO defense ministers backed the plan, which is part of a military makeover to ensure an alliance set up 53 years ago to fight the Cold War remains relevant in the post-Sept. 11 era.
Iraqis and Palestinians protest outside the U.S. embassy against war with Iraq, in Warsaw, Poland. Tuesday, NATO defense ministers were discussing ways to modernize the alliance and make it more flexible in reacting to terrorism and rouge states like Iraq. Signs at center and right read No
“If NATO does not have a force that is quick and agile, which can deploy in days or weeks, instead of months or years, then it will not have much to offer the world in the 21st century,” Rumsfeld said.
The force is expected to be operational within two years, pending final approval at a NATO summit November in the Czech capital of Prague.
The force is expected to be comprised of elite air, land and sea forces from Europe and North America, with core units ready to deploy within a week to tackle threats beyond NATO’s home ground.
“We’re talking about forces that would be aggressive fighting troops, self-sustaining and able to operate in a hostile climate,” a NATO official said on condition of anonymity.
Allies would assign units to the standing force on a rotation using existing forces so as to not place too great a strain on defense budgets, officials said.
Opening the two-day meeting, NATO Secretary-General George Robertson said NATO had to act quickly to refocus its military muscle so it can “root out and destroy” terrorist threats.
“NATO played a key role in defeating the threats of the Cold War,” Lord Robertson said.
| Washington (ap) The public’s support for military action against Iraq is far stronger if the United States has the backing of allies, according to two new polls.
By a 2-1 margin, those in a CBS News poll said the United States should wait to get the backing of allies before taking action against Iraq, rather than striking now, before it has won such support. A CNN-USA Today-Gallup poll found a similar caution against hasty action against Iraq. |
“We must now transform our alliance so that it can play an equally pivotal part in the war against terrorism and the dangers of weapons of mass destruction.”
Although NATO is not expected to take a direct role in any military action against Iraq, tensions within the alliance over how to deal with President Saddam Hussein overshadowed the meeting.
Many allies are uneasy about prospects for U.S.-led attack and Germany has expressed outright opposition, prompting an acrimonious exchange between Washington and Berlin.