The election of President-elect Donald Trump in the United States has sent a shockwave through NATO, and fearful of losing US support for their latest costly attempt to return to a Cold War-era has set the alliance’s leadership on a new campaign of hyping the need for an anti-Russia campaign, with Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg publishing a new article playing up the idea of NATO needing to be ready to mobilize against Russia in Eastern Europe, above and beyond the 300,000 troops already there.
Stoltenberg also addressed a news conference during which he pointedly warned against Trump’s talk of making US military force in Europe conditional on European funding, insisting that all NATO members have to provide “absolute and unconditional” security support for one another.
Stoltenberg insisted that the only time Article 5 had been invoked by NATO was to support the United States after 9/11, which led to an alliance-wide invasion and occupation of Afghanistan. While true, alliance members have constantly raised the specter of doing so to suck the US into major wars, including Turkey raising the possibility of doing so against Syria.
During the campaign, Trump expressed major doubts about the relevance of NATO in a post-Cold War world, comments which fueled considerable anger from officials deeply invested in the recent military buildups in Eastern Europe in recent years, and a major backlash which saw the rest of NATO crossing their fingers for a Clinton victory that ultimately did not come.
Trump continued to emphasize the need for European nations to pay more of the cost for their defense, saying the United States could no longer do so. This was not well-received in Europe and is likely to continue to be a source of tension between NATO and the incoming Trump Administration, with NATO determined to maintain the status quo.
Trump is not likely to go along to get along with NATO, and the fact that so much of the campaign centered around Clinton et al calling him a Russian “puppet” is likely to add to his skepticism about the need to continue throwing troops at Latvia and Estonia nearly 30 years after the Soviet Union crumbled.
Exactly how much this NATO backlash amounts to remains to be seen, as historically the United States has heavily driven NATO policy, and it’s not at all clear how readily Stoltenberg can rally the rest of the alliance toward major pressure on a US government for not playing ball.
The solution for NATO countries is surely nuclear weapons. After all, would the Russians have supported the civil war in Ukraine if the Ukrainians had retained all the nukes the Soviet Union had stationed there?
The Germans could start this off by restarting the nukes shut down in east Germany after re-unification, and in the west later. They could pay for this by abolishing their ridiculous renewable energy program. The money they no longer needed to pay Russia for its gas would pay for their nice new nuclear weapons.
` Unwelcome` – Idiot !
http://i.onionstatic.com/avclub/5865/19/16×9/960.jpg
Newsflash for these idiot Euros: Art 5 is not nearly this lockdown clause that people pretend it is. If Estonia were invaded tomorrow our treaty obligations would be satisfied by sending them a letter that said “We wish you well”.
Glad you mentioned it. It is not quite a tripwire it was touted to be. However our ridiculous foreign policy has created tripwires — and we are stuck forever paying the bills. Example Kosovo. A former crime gang turned terrorist organization, rebranded as “freedom” fighters — got a state of its own. But withoit a US base there and permanent NATO presence — the crime ridden ssociety cannot function. The remaining Serbs are living precariously, facing constant attacks, destruction of churces and monasteries. To top it off all former Turkish Sufi mosques turned Salafi followers of Wahhabi Saudi sect. Cult of ISIS is being assembledvub front of our noses. Same Bosnia. It is as if this is a plan — bring ISIS and then we have local conflicts eith Christians — and here is our new blessed intervention to save mankind.
If we do not have this idiotic Russiophobia — the cultural and religious ties that bind arussiavto Balkans would work in our interest. Let Russia get involved in the region, marginalize all Albanian secessionism, and help Albania give them immigration opportunities and stop funding and protecting secessionism. Involve Turkey to help Suffi communities and work with region to ban Salafism and their unregulated communities. Cults must be controlled not cuddled.
US could get out of policing Balkans easily — and make it cheaper for NATO. But tin foil hats would not like it.
These Baltic States have gotten very cocky ever since they were allowed to join NATO . But at least they do pay their fair share . They do this because they don’t treat their minority Russian Baltic citizens equally . After they were allowed to leave the Soviet Union , They tore down the statues of the Allied soldiers that freed them from the NAZIs . and built new statues honoring the NAZI soldiers . They did this to antagonize the Russian almost 1/3 of their citizens that are ethnic Russians . In the Baltic democracies most Russians are not allowed to vote unless they can trace back their ancestory back for more than 75 years . Russia has not attack anyone but NATO has attacked many countries over the last 25 years . If the United States left western Europe to defend themselves these little Baltic NAZIs would all of a sudden be a lot more friendly nations to Russia .
If Trump surrounds himself with people like Bolton, Gaffney & Corker, things will get worse in Europe, not better.
If you haven’t learned yet that Trump is the boss man,and leads instead of follows,you never will.
He singlehandedly defeated zion,and its poison lying media,and their evil twit moron puppet,HRC.
He is da man!
A new dawn,and f*ck European retards stuck in ancient stupid enmities.
Yankee come home.
I couldn’t agree with you more. Donald Trump’s beholden to nobody – especially, the North Atlantic Terrorist Organization; he’s beholden only to the American people.
He had pledged to revive diplomatic relations with Russia, and he intends to keep that pledge .. And, if that means pulling out of NATO, he’s ready to do that. Naturally, that will bring about NATO’s demise, because the Europeans won’t try to keep it going.
As you correctly said, The Donald single-handedly defeated Zion, its poison lying media, and their evil puppet, HRC. It’s going to be a new dawn, and the European retards will be stuck in their ancient stupid enmities.
Time for the Yankee troops to return home.
Things are getting worse and worse even without them.
Hillary and the party of hate lost the election …. HA HA HA HA
“NATO” is such a PoS
You’re absolutely right, Stefan; no wonder, NATO’s been renamed The North Atlantic Terrorist Organization. It’s aggressive moves toward Russia’s borders is nothing more than a bluff. Why? Russia has far more advanced weaponry, tanks, APC’s, warships, etc., and its defenses far outweigh NATO’s. It’s missile defense systems are the best, par none.
The confrontation with Russia, cold war or whatever you call it, is necessary for the elite of the West first of all to keep Europe under the control of the corporations. As they put it after WW2: we must keep USA in, Germany down and Russia out. One of their priorities is to promote to the important political positions the Russo-phobic element. So anyone who is not rabid Russophobe, is accused of being a Putin puppet or commie. That is why they need US military in Europe, particular in Germany. It would be interesting to watch what Trump can do about all that.
Stoltenberg should be drawn Into a long and meaningful conversation by two guys dressed in white, doneing a large butterfly net.
I guess everyone should get rid of their MIC related stocks. The Donald to the rescue.
Regardless of what Trump does it will be less harmful than what Clinton would have done. Trump needs to sit down with Putin and Lavarov and find common ground in these stupid disputes the USA is engaged in with Russia.
I think things are looking much better for Europe especially the Russian part of Europe . Western Europe can put all the troops they want into eastern Europe , But I see no reason for the United States to pay for it . Germany got the United States to destroy Yugoslavia for them . I think if Germany wants to attack Russia . Just go a head and do it but don’t expect any help from the USA . NATO looks to me to be a bunch criminal countries that have joined a big club that think their movements don’t stink