NATO defense ministers meeting will be held on June 8 in Brussels. In the post-Cold War era, NATO forces act outside Europe. The agenda in this meeting will be the key to US strategy and its relations with allies.
Julian Lindley-French, Senior Scholar at the Center for Applied Policy, University of Munich, has contributed an article “For the Crucial Alliance, a Day of Decision” to the International Herald Tribune on May 30.
He says this meeting is important to set the agenda for the summit meeting in Riga this November. In face of increasingly authoritarian and assertive China, and erratic and untrustworthy Russia, NATO must transform itself into a global security alliance. For this objective, he suggests four points to be discussed.
1. Structural interventions:
Be clear about the reason for intervention. The alliance intervenes when democratic security is threatened. A new concept of structural intervention is required to re-energize NATO objectives.
2. Smart organization:
If NATO were to act globally, its forces must be more professional and smaller. It is necessary to strike a balance between rapid reaction and enduring operation to accomplish the mission for stability and reconstruction.
3. Smart transformation:
In face of new threats, like Russia, China, and other smaller autocratic states, NATO must develop a collective military capability. Also, NATO forces must be agile and multinational to adjust themselves to diversified missions.
4. Smart partnerships:
NATO can work with democracies in the Asia Pacific, the Greater Middle East, and Latin America. The June 8 meeting should be the first step toward a big NATO.
The above four points are crucial for American allies outside NATO as well. Japan, Australia, and New Zealand will act with NATO from Suez to the Pearl Harbor. Currently, US forces in Japan are under transformation, and this is a vital issue in Japanese national security. What happens in the Atlantic and the Pacific is strongly interrelated. Also, some like India, aspiring for a strategic partnership with the United States, needs to pay attention to issues discussed at the ministers meeting.
They are agendas for American global strategy, not only for the transatlantic alliance.
5 comments:
Shah,
Currently, US forces in Japan are under transformation, and this is a vital issue in Japanese national security.
I am interested to know, what kind of transformation is currently taking place? I have had many friends over the years stationed in Japan, it would be hard for me to accept a lot of personnel cuts, given the sleeping giant also known as China, is coming up on the horizon.
The basic idea of transformation is quick response for diversified operations. Also, reduce over concentrated burden of Okinawa.
For this purpose, Substantial portion of US forces in Okinawa move to Guam. Japanese media criticize this deal, because Japan pays for building Guam facilities, houses, and so on. As you know, Guam is US territory, and the media questions why Japanese taxpayers money is spent on military facilities there. The Japanese government does not explain it.
The headquarters of the 1st Corps in Fort Lewis, Washington move to Camp Zama, western suburb of Tokyo. This will be a new multifunctional headquarters for Asia-Pacific operations.
Some troops move another base in Japan, because of NIMBY protests. Navy planes at Atsugi (west of Yokohama) move to Iwakuni (southwest of Hiroshima).
Fir further information, you can see http://usfj.mil.
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