Obama Fails in Press for NATO Surge

Last updated 4/4 2:05 PM EST

President Barack Obama’s European tour has failed to net any serious commitments from NATO allies. He got some short term commitments, yet with the US planning to send tens of thousands of additional troops this year, these are hardly a drop in the bucket.

The only tangible offer came from British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, who offered to send “up to 1,000” more troops ahead of the nation’s August election. Yet this offer was predicated on ‘a willingness by other NATO allies to share the burden.’

With NATO’s other members seemingly unwilling to commit serious additional troops to the ongoing war, the question of how many, if any, troops Britain might provide remains up in the air, and Gordon Brown, four months after announcing a “review,” seems undecided on the boost.

Obama’s tour was well received, and the foreign media embraced him in a way they never did with his predecessor. Yet for all the applause his speeches netted, the one thing he made most clear was that his popularity wasn’t going to make it any easier to sell escalating the failed wars he inherited.