4 New Messages
Digest #4679
Messages
Mon Apr 15, 2013 6:03 am (PDT) . Posted by:
"Rick Rozoff" rwrozoff
http://www.nato.
North Atlantic Treaty Organization
April 15, 2013
NATO and Japan sign Political Declaration for a stronger partnership
Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen signed a Joint Political Declaration with the Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe which provides a framework for the further developmont of the relationship between NATO and Japan. “I am convinced that the joint political declaration we have just signed will make our partnership even stronger in the future,” said the Secretary General during his visit to Tokyo on Monday (15 April).
Mr Fogh Rasmussen said the declaration highlights that the relationship between NATO and Japan is based on joint values and the common security challenges faced by both..."
This is the first joint declaration signed between NATO and Japan. In the document, Japan and NATO spell out their shared strategic interests in promoting global peace, stability and prosperity..
The Secretary General and the Japanese Prime Minister also discussed North Korea. Mr. Fogh Rasmussen commended international efforts to seek a peaceful solution through dialogue.
During his visit, the Secretary General also held talks with the Minister of Foreign Affairs Fumio Kishida, Defence Minister Itsunori Onodera and he met with members of the Japanese Diet. The Secretary General thanked them for their country’s commitment to international security, and notably Japan's contribution in Afghanistan and he expressed hope that Japan will continue its support there after 2014. "We thank you for Japan’s enormous contributions to supporting security and development in Afghanistan,
============
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North Atlantic Treaty Organization
April 15, 2013
NATO and Japan sign Political Declaration for a stronger partnership
Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen signed a Joint Political Declaration with the Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe which provides a framework for the further developmont of the relationship between NATO and Japan. “I am convinced that the joint political declaration we have just signed will make our partnership even stronger in the future,” said the Secretary General during his visit to Tokyo on Monday (15 April).
Mr Fogh Rasmussen said the declaration highlights that the relationship between NATO and Japan is based on joint values and the common security challenges faced by both..."
This is the first joint declaration signed between NATO and Japan. In the document, Japan and NATO spell out their shared strategic interests in promoting global peace, stability and prosperity..
The Secretary General and the Japanese Prime Minister also discussed North Korea. Mr. Fogh Rasmussen commended international efforts to seek a peaceful solution through dialogue.
During his visit, the Secretary General also held talks with the Minister of Foreign Affairs Fumio Kishida, Defence Minister Itsunori Onodera and he met with members of the Japanese Diet. The Secretary General thanked them for their country’s commitment to international security, and notably Japan's contribution in Afghanistan and he expressed hope that Japan will continue its support there after 2014. "We thank you for Japan’s enormous contributions to supporting security and development in Afghanistan,
============
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Mon Apr 15, 2013 3:04 pm (PDT) . Posted by:
"Rick Rozoff" rwrozoff
http://www.lithuani
Baltic News Service
April 15, 2013
Poland’s missile defence system may become a regional project
====
The Polish defence minister emphasized that the missile defence system being developed in Poland is “an element of the common system also built by the United States.”
In his words, the Polish project has nothing to do with the US decision to give up one of the NATO missile defence system elements in Europe, as the Warsaw plans were announced much earlier.
“What is being built by NATO and the United States is missile defence against medium-range missiles, however, we want to develop our system in a way to defend us against short-range [Russian] missiles,” Siemoniak noted.
====
The missile defence system under development in Poland may become a regional project, however, the time is too early for negotiations with partners, Polish Defence Minister Tomasz Siemoniak said during a visit in Lithuania.
“We are open to see the project becoming a project of regional cooperation,” the Polish minister told BNS.
Asked again whether Warsaw was inviting Vilnius to develop together missile defence capacities, Siemoniak stated that searching for partners would be part of the next phase, which is yet to be started.
“We want the programs to be open and targeted at our partners in the European Union (EU) and NATO. However, I think it is too early to discuss the details. Without doubt, I want to emphasise that after today’s highly successful conversations that Lithuania is our very important partner in military cooperation,” the minister said in an interview late Thursday.
“However, these are such high-calibre things, which require highly specific and in-depth negotiations before being announced to the public. On the other hand, we in Poland have to know precisely what we can propose and to whom, and we haven’t reached the phase yet,” Siemoniak said.
“On Friday, our president will sign a law that guarantees funding for air defence, including missile defence, for the coming years. On the other hand, we are currently working to establish the concepts and possibilities we may find interesting. Searching for partners will be in the next phase,” he added.
The Polish defence minister emphasized that the missile defence system being developed in Poland is “an element of the common system also built by the United States.”
In his words, the Polish project has nothing to do with the US decision to give up one of the NATO missile defence system elements in Europe, as the Warsaw plans were announced much earlier.
“What is being built by NATO and the United States is missile defence against medium-range missiles, however, we want to develop our system in a way to defend us against short-range missiles,” Siemoniak noted.
...
Officials say the most important part for Europe and Lithuania is to have the US keep its promise of implementing phases two and three, which include radars and missile traps in Romania and Poland. [T]he phases should be completed by 2018. Once implemented, the missile shield will cover all of NATO’s European territory.
Poland first mentioned its new regional security initiatives last year.
At a meeting with Poland’s Prime Minister Donald Tusk, Lithuania’s then PM Andrius Kubilius said he was briefed on “initiatives covering matters related to the development and strengthening of a wider Central and Northern European region.” Kubilius defined them as “new and interesting ideas”, but refused to elaborate any further.
============
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============
Baltic News Service
April 15, 2013
Poland’s missile defence system may become a regional project
====
The Polish defence minister emphasized that the missile defence system being developed in Poland is “an element of the common system also built by the United States.”
In his words, the Polish project has nothing to do with the US decision to give up one of the NATO missile defence system elements in Europe, as the Warsaw plans were announced much earlier.
“What is being built by NATO and the United States is missile defence against medium-range missiles, however, we want to develop our system in a way to defend us against short-range [Russian] missiles,” Siemoniak noted.
====
The missile defence system under development in Poland may become a regional project, however, the time is too early for negotiations with partners, Polish Defence Minister Tomasz Siemoniak said during a visit in Lithuania.
“We are open to see the project becoming a project of regional cooperation,” the Polish minister told BNS.
Asked again whether Warsaw was inviting Vilnius to develop together missile defence capacities, Siemoniak stated that searching for partners would be part of the next phase, which is yet to be started.
“We want the programs to be open and targeted at our partners in the European Union (EU) and NATO. However, I think it is too early to discuss the details. Without doubt, I want to emphasise that after today’s highly successful conversations that Lithuania is our very important partner in military cooperation,” the minister said in an interview late Thursday.
“However, these are such high-calibre things, which require highly specific and in-depth negotiations before being announced to the public. On the other hand, we in Poland have to know precisely what we can propose and to whom, and we haven’t reached the phase yet,” Siemoniak said.
“On Friday, our president will sign a law that guarantees funding for air defence, including missile defence, for the coming years. On the other hand, we are currently working to establish the concepts and possibilities we may find interesting. Searching for partners will be in the next phase,” he added.
The Polish defence minister emphasized that the missile defence system being developed in Poland is “an element of the common system also built by the United States.”
In his words, the Polish project has nothing to do with the US decision to give up one of the NATO missile defence system elements in Europe, as the Warsaw plans were announced much earlier.
“What is being built by NATO and the United States is missile defence against medium-range missiles, however, we want to develop our system in a way to defend us against short-range missiles,” Siemoniak noted.
...
Officials say the most important part for Europe and Lithuania is to have the US keep its promise of implementing phases two and three, which include radars and missile traps in Romania and Poland. [T]he phases should be completed by 2018. Once implemented, the missile shield will cover all of NATO’s European territory.
Poland first mentioned its new regional security initiatives last year.
At a meeting with Poland’s Prime Minister Donald Tusk, Lithuania’s then PM Andrius Kubilius said he was briefed on “initiatives covering matters related to the development and strengthening of a wider Central and Northern European region.” Kubilius defined them as “new and interesting ideas”, but refused to elaborate any further.
============
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============
Mon Apr 15, 2013 3:06 pm (PDT) . Posted by:
"Rick Rozoff" rwrozoff
http://www.marforeu
United States Marine Corps
April 11, 2013
BSRF-13 ready to train in Romania
Lance Cpl. Michael Dye
MIHAL KOGALNICEANU, Romania: Marines and sailors with Black Sea Rotational Force 13 arrived at Mihail Kogalniceanu, Romania which will serve as the unit’s home throughout its six-month deployment as a crisis contingency force.
An opening ceremony April 12 marked the official welcome for BSRF-13 to Romania. BSRF-13 and soldiers with the Romanian 341 Battalion, 9th Brigade stationed out of Topraisar, Romania conducted a pass in review for Lt. Col. Steve Wolf, BSRF-13 commanding officer and Col. Ioan-Daru Apafaian, exercise director for BSRF-Romanian Forces, after the parade both gentlemen gave speeches welcoming the two forces.
“We are very happy to be based at M.K.,” said Wolf. “We look forward to making Romania our new home.”
BSRF-13 is a Special Purpose Marine Air Ground Task Force working in the Black Sea region...BSRF-
“Since the first BSRF in 2010 these exercises have provided a great amount of satisfaction and benefits to all parties involved,” said Apafaian. “Mainly in improving our interoperability, developing common operating procedures and improving the relations among military personnel from our countries.”
Wolf explained that interoperability is the ability of military units from different countries to work together.
The next military engagement scheduled for the Black Sea sailors and Marines is Exercise Summer Shield in Latvia. The joint force will focus on integration of fires and maneuver in a joint environment in order to build partner nation capacity, enhance interoperability between our countries and increase the overall effectiveness of the Latvian land forces to operate independently as a NATO member.
...
============
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http://groups.
Stop NATO website and articles:
http://rickrozoff.
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============
United States Marine Corps
April 11, 2013
BSRF-13 ready to train in Romania
Lance Cpl. Michael Dye
MIHAL KOGALNICEANU, Romania: Marines and sailors with Black Sea Rotational Force 13 arrived at Mihail Kogalniceanu, Romania which will serve as the unit’s home throughout its six-month deployment as a crisis contingency force.
An opening ceremony April 12 marked the official welcome for BSRF-13 to Romania. BSRF-13 and soldiers with the Romanian 341 Battalion, 9th Brigade stationed out of Topraisar, Romania conducted a pass in review for Lt. Col. Steve Wolf, BSRF-13 commanding officer and Col. Ioan-Daru Apafaian, exercise director for BSRF-Romanian Forces, after the parade both gentlemen gave speeches welcoming the two forces.
“We are very happy to be based at M.K.,” said Wolf. “We look forward to making Romania our new home.”
BSRF-13 is a Special Purpose Marine Air Ground Task Force working in the Black Sea region...BSRF-
“Since the first BSRF in 2010 these exercises have provided a great amount of satisfaction and benefits to all parties involved,” said Apafaian. “Mainly in improving our interoperability, developing common operating procedures and improving the relations among military personnel from our countries.”
Wolf explained that interoperability is the ability of military units from different countries to work together.
The next military engagement scheduled for the Black Sea sailors and Marines is Exercise Summer Shield in Latvia. The joint force will focus on integration of fires and maneuver in a joint environment in order to build partner nation capacity, enhance interoperability between our countries and increase the overall effectiveness of the Latvian land forces to operate independently as a NATO member.
...
============
Stop NATO e-mail list home page with archives and search engine:
http://groups.
Stop NATO website and articles:
http://rickrozoff.
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stopnato-subscribe@
============
Mon Apr 15, 2013 3:25 pm (PDT) . Posted by:
"Rick Rozoff" rwrozoff
http://news.
Xinhua News Agency
April 14, 2013
News Analysis: U.S., Western allies seem securing scenarios for intervention in Syria
• Washington: Syria's use of chemical weapons would be "a red line" to trigger military intervention.
• Iraqi wing of al-Qaida said al-Nusra Front radical group in Syria was part of global terror network.
• Armed rebels backed with al- Nusra Front have deliberately attacked several airbases across Syria.
DAMASCUS: Several new developments in Syria have deepened the conviction that Washington and its Western allies have prepared scenarios to justify their positions if they decide to intervene in Syria, even though official rhetoric refers otherwise.
SYRIA'S CHEMICAL WEAPONS
Since last year, the Untied States and several European countries have floated fears of Syria's chemical weapons "falling into the wrong hands" if the Syrian administration falls. Israel also said it had plans to intervene to secure those arsenals in case of a "regime collapse."
While Washington said the Syrian administration&#
Last month, the Syrian government accused the rebels of firing a rocket stuffed with chemical materials at the pro-government town of Khan al-Asal in the northern province of Aleppo. The attack led to the death of at least 26 people, 11 of whom were army personnel, as the rocket landed near a military outpost.
Syria has urged the UN to send a "technical team" to investigate the bombed site, but the UN said it wanted an expanded probe on several areas, not only Khan al-Asal. Damascus dismissed the expanded probe as an attempt to infringe upon the Syrian sovereignty and said it ran counter to its original request.
But western media now splash a thick black headline reading: "British scientists find evidence of Syrian chemical attack."
A secret British operation has smuggled out a soil sample which provides the first forensic evidence of the use of chemical weapons in Syria, Britain'
It said the British scientists working at the Ministry of Defense'
If proven the weapons were used by the government forces, the new tests would add to growing pressure for the West to intervene or at least begin arming the Syrian rebels, the British Telegraph said Saturday.
Moreover, the rebel Free Syrian Army has fanned the flames, alleging on Saturday that the Syrian army would use the chemical weapons in its fight against the rebels to push them away from the surrounding suburbs of the capital.
Mohammad Refai, a political analyst, backed the theory of the Syrian government that the western-backed rebels had planned and carried out attacks using chemical weapons in Syria because "this is the very scenario that the Obama administration said represented its 'red line' on military intervention in Syria."
"It'
AL-QAIDA DECLARATION OF ISLAMIC STATE IN SYRIA
Another element that spiked fears of another "war on terrorism" in the region was the recent declaration by the Iraqi wing of al- Qaida that the al-Nusra Front radical group in Syria was part of the global terror network.
The declaration, made on Tuesday by Sheikh Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, leader of al-Qaida in Iraq, came just two days after al-Qaida'
The Syrian government has consistently warned that al-Qaida had been making use of the Syrian crisis and that it was behind the explosions and disturbances nationwide.
The al-Qaida declaration came also one day ahead of the Group of Eight nations' meeting, when the exiled Syrian opposition called on the sidelines of the meeting for lethal aid but were not promised anything.
Experts believe that the declaration&#
TARGETING SYRIA'S AIRPORTS, AIRFIELDS
Over the past year, the armed rebels in Syria backed with al- Nusra Front have deliberately attacked several airbases across the country. They also tried to attack civilian airports in the capital Damascus and Aleppo.
The rebels' tactic was seen as a bid to paralyze the Syrian air force and prevent it from carrying out strikes against rebels' strongholds nationwide.
Amin Hutait, a retired Lebanese brigadier and military expert, said recently that the rebels had even attacked airbases which were far from the conflict zones, pointing out that the strategy of targeting military airfields aimed to weaken the Syrian air force ability to respond to any foreign aggression.
What buoyed Hutait's idea was the Israeli airstrike that targeted a military research center at the Jumraya suburb of Damascus in January.
At the time, Syria's Defense Minister Gen. Fahd Jassem al-Freij said the Israeli raid rendered help to the rebels who were trying to destroy the facility for no avail.
The minister said the "armed terrorist groups" had been recently targeting Syria's air-defense systems on the behest of Israel in order to render those systems out of service.
He said the targeting of air defense systems had pushed the Syrian leadership to bring those systems close together to protect them.
On Thursday, the CNN cited a senior U.S. military official as saying that "under pressure from Democrats and Republicans, the Joint Staff of the Pentagon and the U.S. Central Command have updated potential military options for intervention in Syria that could see American forces - if ordered - doing everything from bombing Syrian airfields to flying large amounts of humanitarian aid to the region."
According to the report, the military official "emphasized ( that) the options are for planning and there is no indication President Barack Obama is about to order any military action."
"The official made clear the U.S. military would be extremely cautious about sending any manned aircraft into Syrian airspace," the CNN report said, adding that "the United States has long said the Syrians have a massive network of air defense radars and missiles that would have to be largely destroyed by bombing before American pilots could safely fly over Syria."
Xinhua News Agency
April 14, 2013
News Analysis: U.S., Western allies seem securing scenarios for intervention in Syria
• Washington: Syria's use of chemical weapons would be "a red line" to trigger military intervention.
• Iraqi wing of al-Qaida said al-Nusra Front radical group in Syria was part of global terror network.
• Armed rebels backed with al- Nusra Front have deliberately attacked several airbases across Syria.
DAMASCUS: Several new developments in Syria have deepened the conviction that Washington and its Western allies have prepared scenarios to justify their positions if they decide to intervene in Syria, even though official rhetoric refers otherwise.
SYRIA'S CHEMICAL WEAPONS
Since last year, the Untied States and several European countries have floated fears of Syria's chemical weapons "falling into the wrong hands" if the Syrian administration falls. Israel also said it had plans to intervene to secure those arsenals in case of a "regime collapse."
While Washington said the Syrian administration&#
Last month, the Syrian government accused the rebels of firing a rocket stuffed with chemical materials at the pro-government town of Khan al-Asal in the northern province of Aleppo. The attack led to the death of at least 26 people, 11 of whom were army personnel, as the rocket landed near a military outpost.
Syria has urged the UN to send a "technical team" to investigate the bombed site, but the UN said it wanted an expanded probe on several areas, not only Khan al-Asal. Damascus dismissed the expanded probe as an attempt to infringe upon the Syrian sovereignty and said it ran counter to its original request.
But western media now splash a thick black headline reading: "British scientists find evidence of Syrian chemical attack."
A secret British operation has smuggled out a soil sample which provides the first forensic evidence of the use of chemical weapons in Syria, Britain'
It said the British scientists working at the Ministry of Defense'
If proven the weapons were used by the government forces, the new tests would add to growing pressure for the West to intervene or at least begin arming the Syrian rebels, the British Telegraph said Saturday.
Moreover, the rebel Free Syrian Army has fanned the flames, alleging on Saturday that the Syrian army would use the chemical weapons in its fight against the rebels to push them away from the surrounding suburbs of the capital.
Mohammad Refai, a political analyst, backed the theory of the Syrian government that the western-backed rebels had planned and carried out attacks using chemical weapons in Syria because "this is the very scenario that the Obama administration said represented its 'red line' on military intervention in Syria."
"It'
AL-QAIDA DECLARATION OF ISLAMIC STATE IN SYRIA
Another element that spiked fears of another "war on terrorism" in the region was the recent declaration by the Iraqi wing of al- Qaida that the al-Nusra Front radical group in Syria was part of the global terror network.
The declaration, made on Tuesday by Sheikh Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, leader of al-Qaida in Iraq, came just two days after al-Qaida'
The Syrian government has consistently warned that al-Qaida had been making use of the Syrian crisis and that it was behind the explosions and disturbances nationwide.
The al-Qaida declaration came also one day ahead of the Group of Eight nations' meeting, when the exiled Syrian opposition called on the sidelines of the meeting for lethal aid but were not promised anything.
Experts believe that the declaration&#
TARGETING SYRIA'S AIRPORTS, AIRFIELDS
Over the past year, the armed rebels in Syria backed with al- Nusra Front have deliberately attacked several airbases across the country. They also tried to attack civilian airports in the capital Damascus and Aleppo.
The rebels' tactic was seen as a bid to paralyze the Syrian air force and prevent it from carrying out strikes against rebels' strongholds nationwide.
Amin Hutait, a retired Lebanese brigadier and military expert, said recently that the rebels had even attacked airbases which were far from the conflict zones, pointing out that the strategy of targeting military airfields aimed to weaken the Syrian air force ability to respond to any foreign aggression.
What buoyed Hutait's idea was the Israeli airstrike that targeted a military research center at the Jumraya suburb of Damascus in January.
At the time, Syria's Defense Minister Gen. Fahd Jassem al-Freij said the Israeli raid rendered help to the rebels who were trying to destroy the facility for no avail.
The minister said the "armed terrorist groups" had been recently targeting Syria's air-defense systems on the behest of Israel in order to render those systems out of service.
He said the targeting of air defense systems had pushed the Syrian leadership to bring those systems close together to protect them.
On Thursday, the CNN cited a senior U.S. military official as saying that "under pressure from Democrats and Republicans, the Joint Staff of the Pentagon and the U.S. Central Command have updated potential military options for intervention in Syria that could see American forces - if ordered - doing everything from bombing Syrian airfields to flying large amounts of humanitarian aid to the region."
According to the report, the military official "emphasized ( that) the options are for planning and there is no indication President Barack Obama is about to order any military action."
"The official made clear the U.S. military would be extremely cautious about sending any manned aircraft into Syrian airspace," the CNN report said, adding that "the United States has long said the Syrians have a massive network of air defense radars and missiles that would have to be largely destroyed by bombing before American pilots could safely fly over Syria."
