U.S. Secretary Of State Kerry: There Is No Split Between The U.S. And Europe On Russia Policy

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry gestures as he arrives for the chairman's debate at the 51st Munich Security Conference at the 'Bayerischer Hof' hotel in Munich February 8, 2015. Credit: Reuters/Michael Dalder

Reuters: Kerry denies split between U.S. and Europe on Russia policy

(Reuters) - Secretary of State John Kerry denied on Sunday that a split has emerged between Washington and Europe over how to handle Russia, after leading U.S. senators sharply criticized Germany and other countries who oppose sending arms to the Ukraine military.

WNU Editor: I disagree. In all my decades of following NATO, Europe, Russia, and the U.S. .... I have never seen the top leaders of NATO so divided .... especially between the U.S. and its major European partners on what should be the current policy vis-a-vis Russia. In all fairness .... it is Europe that will experience the brunt of any escalation in the conflict in Ukraine .... so their concerns are different from America's. I also expect this division to grow. The post-Cold War understanding on how relations are to followed and that has kept the peace in Europe since the fall of the Berlin Wall and the dissolution of the Soviet Union are now in ruins .... and everyone is justifiably worried.

U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel: Concerned About Possible Split In NATO

Reuters: U.S. defense chief voices fear of north-south NATO divide

Update: Hagel concerned about possible split in NATO

WNU Editor: The split is over priorities .... focus on Ukraine/Russia or focus on the growing insecurity situation on the southern and eastern coastlines of the Mediterranean.

NATO Chiefs Meet To Respond To The Ukraine Crisis And Russia

Voice of America: NATO Meets to Discuss Strengthening Defenses Near Russia

More News On Today's NATO Meeting To Respond To The Ukraine Crisis And Russia

Ukraine crisis: Nato to bolster Eastern Europe against Russia -- BBC
NATO strengthens forces in eastern Europe against Russia risk -- Reuters
NATO to boost eastern defences after Russian 'aggression' -- AFP
NATO to boost rapid–reaction force in response to growing threats -- Stars and Stripes
NATO due to more than double 'rapid response' force in reaction to Ukraine -- Deuscthe Welle
30,000 troops, 6 rapid units: NATO increases military power in Eastern Europe -- RT
NATO set to increase size of response force -- FOX News/AP
NATO Beefs up Response Force to Face Russia, Islamic Threats -- ABC News/AP
NATO finalises spearhead forces to counter ‘Russian threat’ -- Euronews
NATO Maps Eastern Defense Plan, With European Forces in Lead -- Bloomberg
UK to Send 1,000 More Troops to Bolster NATO Forces in Eastern Europe -- Sputnik
NATO Pledges Support for Ukraine, No Word on Weapons -- WSJ
NATO Chief to Meet With Ukrainian President Poroshenko in Munich Saturday -- Sputnik
NATO Reports Russian Military Involvement in Ukraine Reduced to Specialist Roles -- Moscow Times/Reuters
Top NATO general warns of Russian reaction to arming Ukraine -- AP
Putin could attack Baltic states warns former Nato chief -- The Telegraph
Insight - Russia's nuclear strategy raises concerns in NATO -- Adrian Croft, Reuters
Nato readjusts as Ukraine crisis looms -- Jonathan Marcus, BBC

Is NATO Dead?

The Economist

The End Of NATO -- Victor Davis Hanson, Hoover Institution

Declaring the North Atlantic Treaty Organization dead has been a pastime of analysts since the end of the Cold War. The alliance, today 28-members strong, has survived 65 years because its glaring contradictions were often overlooked, given the dangers of an expansionist and nuclear Soviet Union and its Warsaw Pact subjects.

From its beginning, NATO had billed itself as a democratic Western bastion against Soviet totalitarian aggression—if not always in practice then at least in theory. NATO never had much problem keeping Greece and Turkey in the alliance despite their occasionally oppressive, rightwing military dictatorships, given the strategic location of both and the need to keep the pair’s historical rivalries in-house. If the alliance’s exalted motto “animus inconsulendo liber” (“A free mind in consultation”) was not always applicable, NATO still protected something far better than the alternative.

Read more ....

WNU Editor: The following commentary is saying basically the same thing .... A Grave Threat to the NATO Alliance (And It's Not Russia's Military) -- Ted Galen Carpenter, National Interest

As to what is my take .... NATO is definitely not what it once use to be.

NATO Leaders Vow To Increase Defense Spending

(Click on Image to Enlarge)

NATO Leaders to Vow to Lift Military Spending -- Wall Street Journal

Commitment Would Be Nonbinding

NEWPORT, Wales—Leaders of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization will pledge at a summit here to lift their military spending to 2% of each country's gross domestic product over the next 10 years, according to three officials familiar with the negotiations over the summit communiqué.

Only four of NATO's 28 member states currently meet or exceed that level: the U.S., U.K., Greece and Estonia. The decision to cite the 2% figure was the subject of intense political negotiations ahead of the meeting here. NATO summit conclusions negotiated ahead of time are rarely overturned by leaders.

Before the meeting started on Thursday, NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said the alliance would "turn the corner and reverse the trend of declining military spending" at the summit.

Read more ....

Update: NATO backs plan to boost alliance's defenses -- Reuters

My Comment:  The key word in this agreement is that it will be "non-binding" .... which means that no one is committed to these goals. In short .... nothing is going to change.

NATO Summit News Updates -- September 5, 2014

NATO Agrees On New 'Spearhead' Force To Meet Global Threats -- CNN

(CNN) -- The future of Europe may rest on whether NATO can recover its roots.

With Russian President Vladimir Putin "land grabbing" and violating international law, the alliance is finding itself "brought back to its core," says Jaap de Hoop Scheffer, NATO's former secretary general. But it isn't prepared.

When NATO was founded in 1949, its central task was to protect its members against military aggression and work to promote democracy -- which, in the years following, often meant standing against the Soviet empire.

The alliance declares success in achieving that goal peacefully, saying on its website that "throughout the entire period of the Cold War, NATO forces were not involved in a single military engagement."

Read more ....

NATO Summit News Updates -- September 5, 2014

2014 NATO Summit in Wales LIVE UPDATES -- RT
Nato summit in Wales - US forming 'core coalition' to fight Isis: Politics live blog -- The Guardian

Obama: New NATO Force a Signal to Russia -- VOA
NATO approves plans for rapid response force aimed at deterring Russia -- AP
NATO to boost presence in east, approves rapid response force -- AFP
Britain ready to commit 3,500 troops to new NATO force -- AFP
At least 4,000 troops: NATO approves new E. Europe-based spearhead force -- RT
NATO Approves New Reaction Force for Eastern Europe -- NYT
Nato to announce 4,000-strong rapid reaction force to counter Russian threat -- The Guardian

U.S. Forms Anti-ISIS Coalition at NATO Summit -- Time
Obama: NATO to go after Islamic State -- UPI
Obama: Nato coalition ready to join US against IS -- BBC
U.S. says forms 'core coalition' to counter Iraq militants -- Reuters
West to reach out to Syrian rebels to fight Islamic State -- Washington Post

Afghanistan Overshadowed by Russia, Ukraine at NATO Summit -- US News and World Report
Uncertainty of Afghan Election Clouds NATO Summit -- AP
NATO unable to finalize troop numbers for Afghanistan -- Army Times
Obama and NATO face uncertainty instead of closure in Afghanistan -- CBS

NATO Leaders to Vow to Lift Military Spending -- WSJ
NATO backs plan to boost alliance's defenses -- Reuters

NATO says no third country can veto membership -- Reuters
NATO members vow to reinvent the alliance to deal with crises -- Steven Chase, The Globe and Mail
At NATO summit, vows of renewed efforts to contain Russia -- Dan Murphy, CSM

NATO Summit News Updates -- September 4, 2014

Nato Summit Wales: Isil And Ukraine Top Agenda - Latest -- The Telegraph

World leaders including Barack Obama, David Cameron and Petro Poroshenko convene in Wales for the 2014 Nato summit to discuss Iraq, Syria, Russia, Ukraine and Afghanistan

• Poroshenko, Ukraine rebels close to peace deal
• Tory MPs canvassed on support for air strikes on Isil
• What is Nato - explained in 90 seconds
• Jihadi John will be caught, vows Cameron
• Nato surrounded by an “arc of crisis”, says Sec-Gen
• Afghanistan and Ukraine sessions this afternoon

Read more ....

NATO Summit News Updates -- September 4, 2014

Nato summit in Newport, Wales -- BBC
Nato summit in Wales - Britain to arm Kurds to help fight Isis: Politics live blog -- The Guardian
NATO leaders talk Russia and ISIS Live -- CNN
2014 NATO Summit in Wales LIVE UPDATES -- RT

Nato faces up to crises on its borders -- BBC
NATO leaders meet in face of uncertain future -- Stars and Stripes
NATO summit hits Wales at ‘critical time’, Ukraine, Afghanistan, Islamic State top agenda -- RT
Ukraine and Isis threat set to dominate talks as Nato summit starts -- The Guardian
NATO summit to highlight unity against Russia -- Al Jazeera
NATO Group Wants Summit Spotlight on Tripoli, Other Crises -- Defense News
Alliance's Ability To Swiftly Tackle Crises a Top Focus of Wales Summit -- Defense News

NATO Leaders to Vow to Lift Military Spending -- WSJ
NATO summit: Obama, Cameron urge allies to ramp up military spending -- RT
Obama Wants More NATO Defense Spending To Deal With Ukraine And ISIS, But Reality Says Otherwise -- IBTimes

Ukraine dominates day one of NATO summit -- Euronews
Nato summit: Alliance 'stands with Ukraine' -- BBC
NATO slams Russian over Ukraine as summit starts -- Reuters
NATO calls on Russia to pull back troops from Ukraine, stop supporting rebels -- Reuters

Ukraine’s Poroshenko Gets Show of Support from NATO Leaders -- VOA
NATO Chief Dismisses Putin's Ukraine Plan -- VOA
NATO says arms supply to Ukraine up to individual allies -- Reuters
Poroshenko: NATO to Send Military Aid to Ukraine -- RIA Novosti

Nato summit: US and UK to debate military options for tackling Isis -- The Guardian
'We will not be cowed': Obama and British PM David Cameron's joint vow – but lawmakers demand action not words -- Daily Mail
NATO Chief: Alliance Would Consider Intervention in Iraq -- Time
Secretary General: Iraq Sends No Request for Help Against Militants to NATO -- RIA Novosti

NATO To Create A Rapid-Response Force For Eastern Europe

NATO to Create a Rapid-Response Force for Eastern Europe, Officials Say -- New York Times

WASHINGTON — As Ukrainian leaders warned on Monday of “a great war” with Russia, NATO leaders meeting in Wales this week were expected to endorse their most concrete response yet to increased Russian military intervention in Ukraine: establishing a rapid-reaction force capable of deploying quickly to Eastern Europe, officials of the alliance said.

The new force of some 4,000 troops, capable of moving on 48 hours’ notice, will be supported with logistics and equipment pre-positioned in Eastern European countries closer to Russia, with an upgraded schedule of military exercises and deployments that are intended to make NATO’s commitment of collective defense more credible and enhance its deterrence.

Read more ....

Update: NATO to create new 'spearhead' force to respond to crises -- Reuters

My Comment: The creation of a rapid response force of a few thousand men is not going to impress anyone .... least of all Moscow. This is more of a PR exercise to give the appearance that the U.S. and Europe are doing something within the framework of NATO.

NATO Plans To Establish A 'Rapid-Deployment Force' Of 10,000 Troops

German troops who are part of the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) (Reuters / Omar Sobhani)

NATO Planning 'Rapid-Deployment Force' Of 10,000 Troops To Counter Russia -- RT

NATO is reportedly working towards the creation of an expeditionary force composed of 10,000 troops from seven different member states as a result of escalating tensions with Russia over the conflict in Ukraine.

According to the Financial Times, the force’s creation will be spearheaded by Britain and involve contributions from Denmark, Latvia, Estonia, Lithuania, Norway, and the Netherlands. Canada is also interested in joining the group, but it’s not known what its final decision will be.

Read more ....

More News On NATO'S Plan To Establish A 'Rapid-Deployment Force' Of 10,000 Troops

Nato states create new force to counter Moscow -- CNBC/Financial Times
Seven NATO Countries to Create New Response Force over Ukrainian Crisis - Reports -- RIA Novosti
Seven NATO allies to create new rapid reaction force-report -- Reuters
Nato Building 10,000-Strong Force to Counter Russia over Ukraine -- IBTimes
Report: NATO states to form U.K.-led force in response to Russia-Ukraine crisis - Haaretz/Reuters