Military

SHAPE News Summary & Analysis

23 January 2003

NATO

• According to AFP, NATO Secretary General Robertson said Thursday he was confident the Alliance will overcome divisions about backing war against Iraq. He reportedly confirmed that a "small number of nations" in the Alliance were blocking accord on the timing of military planning, telling reporters: "There is a disagreement over timing at the moment, by a small number of nations, but no disagreement on substance at all." He added, however, he was sure the differences could be overcome, notably to allow NATO to provide support for Turkey. "I have absolutely no doubt that the Alliance will as it has promised stand by its ally Turkey, which happens to be a neighbor of Iraq. There is no dispute about that at all," the dispatch quotes Lord Robertson saying. The dispatch adds that without identifying the "small number of nations" blocking agreement, Lord Robertson stressed that the discord over timing relates specifically to the timelines laid down by the UN in relations to inspections. "This is not some sort of bust-up. It is a disagreement over timing not of substance…. We will continue as we always do to try and build consensus in a dignified and a calm way," he reportedly indicated.
  
  
• Media focus on reports that the NAC failed Wednesday to back a U.S. request to advance the military planning for a possible Alliance role in a war against Iraq.
  Several European members of NATO blocked the Alliance from making a decision on a U.S. request for help in an attack against Iraq. NATO officials said that in a meeting at NATO headquarters Wednesday, French and German envoys, supported by their counterparts from other countries, including Belgium and Luxembourg, led the opposition to approving a U.S. request, writes the Washington Post. Their decision made it impossible for NATO to reach the consensus that its rules require for such action, stresses the daily. It notes that "the wrangling" at NATO headquarters was in contrast to the prompt support the Alliance gave the United States after the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.
  
  Transatlantic mistrust over Iraq and increasingly strained relations between continental Europeans and their Anglo-Saxon counterparts boiled over at NATO Wednesday when diplomats were forced to postpone a decision on whether to provide even limited assistance in an Iraq war, says a related Financial Times article. Diplomats said the debate in the NAC was "heated to say the least," the daily continues.
  AFP quotes diplomatic sources saying the NAC will continue discussing the possibilities and stressing that the timing of any decision was the crucial factor. "The proposals remain in active consideration. The NAC will come back to it shortly," one source reportedly said, adding that "the question is the timing of tasking" military planners with making concrete plans.
  While La Libre Belgique asserts that "NATO will wait for Hans Blix' report," the New York Times stresses that a sharp split within NATO or among Security Council members could hamper U.S. political and military planning in several respects.
  
  

TURKEY- IRAQ

• With U.S. forces building in the Gulf, Iraq's neighbors were meeting in Istanbul Thursday to discuss ways to avert a war and urge Baghdad to cooperate more with UN arms inspectors, writes AP. The dispatch quotes a Foreign Ministry spokesman saying the purpose was "to secure the best possible means to avoid war" and to resolve the crisis peacefully. It also quotes an Arab diplomat saying, on condition of anonymity, that participants may discuss sending an envoy to Baghdad. The dispatch, which notes that Gen. Jones is expected in Turkey Friday, quotes a US. official saying U.S. military teams Thursday were wrapping up their inspections of ports and air bases in Turkey, part of a survey of sites that U.S. troops could use to attack Iraq.

BALKANS

• Moscow's Nezavisminaya Gazeta, Jan. 22, claimed it had learned the contents of a confidential directive regarding the withdrawal of Russian troops from the Balkans. "A directive from the Ground Forces' Commander in Chief curtails the training of servicemen to perform peacekeeping missions on the territory of the former Yugoslavia," said the daily, adding: "There is every indication that the last Russian soldiers will leave the Balkans in the near future. A small group of officers will remain in Kosovo as a token that Russia is still performing its international obligations."

OTHER NEWS

• AFP reports NATO Secretary General Robertson unveiled Thursday the winning design for the Alliance's new headquarters, an ultra-modern wave-like structure to replace its aging offices. The high-tech building is due to be completed by the end of the decade. "Its graceful structure, the striking fluidity of its lines are a testimony to NATO's modernity and efficiency," said Lord Robertson, announcing the winner of an international competition to design the new offices. According to the dispatch, the selected design, which won a 200,000-euro prize, came from an international consortium led by the London-based firm SOM with a Belgian associate, Assar. It consists of seven interlinked wave-shaped buildings.