Sun May 25, 2014 5:19 am (PDT) . Posted by:
"Rick Rozoff" rwrozoff
http://www.army.mil/article/
United States Army
May 21, 2014
SecArmy: Land Command making advancements for NATO
By Allied Land Command
IZMIR, Turkey: During a visit last week, Secretary of the Army John McHugh reinforced U.S. commitment to NATO's Allied Land Command, and received briefings from its leadership on progress made since the command was formed in 2012.
"This is an important command, critical to the ground forces in NATO," McHugh said to an audience consisting of a multinational staff. "I was here when the command was first formed two years ago and I'm pleased to be back to see how things are progressing."
In peacetime, Allied Land Command, or LANDCOM, is the principal land force adviser for the alliance, providing expertise in support of NATO's land forces' readiness, competency, and standardization. It is also responsible for their evaluation and certification.
LANDCOM delivers a planning capability in support of higher headquarters, and recommends improvements to doctrine, training and exercises, and technology to improve interoperability between the allied land forces. At all times, LANDCOM advocates on behalf of the NATO force structure and national armies.
"We can deploy to provide mission command for a multi-corps major joint operation," explained Lt. Gen. Ben Hodges, commander of NATO LANDCOM. "During operations, we would act as the core of a joint force command headquarters, responsible for the synchronization of land forces' command and control."
During a meeting with the command's multinational staff, McHugh addressed the significance of NATO.
"Conversations in the U.S. are focused on what will be the future of NATO after ISAF and of course, we are in a period of scarce resources," McHugh said. "But recent day's events have proven that there is a need to be partners for peace and be prepared for whatever challenges may come."
McHugh also received an update on the initiative to pursue command sponsorship and joint military assignment credit for U.S. Soldiers assigned here. In response to the presentation, McHugh reaffirmed U.S. commitment to NATO and Turkey, an important ally and strategic partner.
"We must make sure promotion boards -- and the future of Soldiers assigned here -- reflect that this is an important assignment, because this is a critical mission," said McHugh. "As [Chief of Staff of the Army] Gen. [Ray] Odierno said during a recent visit, this assignment is a broadening experience. We need to ensure that this means something for your career advancements and career improvement."
While here, McHugh met with U.S. Soldiers assigned to LANDCOM for a town hall discussion, thanking them for their service and sacrifice, and for telling him first-hand about their experiences.
==============================
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==============================
United States Army
May 21, 2014
SecArmy: Land Command making advancements for NATO
By Allied Land Command
IZMIR, Turkey: During a visit last week, Secretary of the Army John McHugh reinforced U.S. commitment to NATO's Allied Land Command, and received briefings from its leadership on progress made since the command was formed in 2012.
"This is an important command, critical to the ground forces in NATO," McHugh said to an audience consisting of a multinational staff. "I was here when the command was first formed two years ago and I'm pleased to be back to see how things are progressing."
In peacetime, Allied Land Command, or LANDCOM, is the principal land force adviser for the alliance, providing expertise in support of NATO's land forces' readiness, competency, and standardization. It is also responsible for their evaluation and certification.
LANDCOM delivers a planning capability in support of higher headquarters, and recommends improvements to doctrine, training and exercises, and technology to improve interoperability between the allied land forces. At all times, LANDCOM advocates on behalf of the NATO force structure and national armies.
"We can deploy to provide mission command for a multi-corps major joint operation," explained Lt. Gen. Ben Hodges, commander of NATO LANDCOM. "During operations, we would act as the core of a joint force command headquarters, responsible for the synchronization of land forces' command and control."
During a meeting with the command's multinational staff, McHugh addressed the significance of NATO.
"Conversations in the U.S. are focused on what will be the future of NATO after ISAF and of course, we are in a period of scarce resources," McHugh said. "But recent day's events have proven that there is a need to be partners for peace and be prepared for whatever challenges may come."
McHugh also received an update on the initiative to pursue command sponsorship and joint military assignment credit for U.S. Soldiers assigned here. In response to the presentation, McHugh reaffirmed U.S. commitment to NATO and Turkey, an important ally and strategic partner.
"We must make sure promotion boards -- and the future of Soldiers assigned here -- reflect that this is an important assignment, because this is a critical mission," said McHugh. "As [Chief of Staff of the Army] Gen. [Ray] Odierno said during a recent visit, this assignment is a broadening experience. We need to ensure that this means something for your career advancements and career improvement."
While here, McHugh met with U.S. Soldiers assigned to LANDCOM for a town hall discussion, thanking them for their service and sacrifice, and for telling him first-hand about their experiences.
==============================
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Stop NATO website and articles:
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==============================
Sun May 25, 2014 5:20 am (PDT) . Posted by:
"Martmns ."
Forward from mart
Please Distribute
*Putin to Canada: "Room for compromise on Arctic, not on Ukraine"*
------------------------------
https://ca.news.yahoo.com/
*Associated Press/Canadian Pressvia Yahoo News -
Canadahttps://ca.news.yahoo.
*May 23, 2014*
*Putin talks back to Canada: sees room for compromise on Arctic, not on
UkraineBy The Canadian Press*
*ST. PETERSBURG, Russia -* Vladimir Putin had tough talk for Canada on
Saturday, saying he understands Canadian concerns about Arctic sovereignty
but Canada's stance on Russia's involvement in Ukraine is far more puzzling.
The Russian president suggested Canada's physical distance from Ukraine
meant it had little business meddling in the conflict, adding that Russia
acted within the scope of international law when it annexed the Crimean
peninsula in March.
"Look at where Canada is, and look at where Ukraine and Russia are," he
said in a question-and-answer session in St. Petersburg with senior
representatives of international news agencies, including The Canadian Press
"Neither Canada nor the U.S. have the same amount of interests in Ukraine
as Russia does."
Other than Ukraine and Russia, Canada is home to the largest population of
Ukrainians in the world. Prime Minister Stephen Harper has called for a
"complete reversal" of Russia's actions in Crimea and has levelled
sanctions against a slate of Russian officials and institutions.
Putin says he'd be happy to meet with Harper regarding Ukraine, including
in Normandy during D-Day events next month.
"We are ready for discussion, including with the prime minister," he said.
"And I have spoken with him various times at summits on various issues and
questions. If there is such a necessity or desire now, we are ready."
But on the eve of Ukraine's presidential election, Putin accused the West
of paying short shrift to Russia's interests in Ukraine.
"Where is the guarantee that, after the forceful change of power, Ukraine
will not tomorrow end up in NATO?" Putin asked.
"We hear only one answer, as if on a record: Every nation has a right
determine on its own the security system in which it wants to live, and
that doesn't concern you."
Putin has said that part of what motivated Russia to annex Crimea was to
prevent NATO ships from assembling in the strategic Black Sea peninsula.
The West hopes Sunday's vote could help ease the crisis in eastern Europe;
the Russian leader has promised to respect the results.
As for Canada's concerns about sovereignty in the Arctic, Putin says he
intends to respect international law in the region and to negotiate with
all interested nations.
Russia, Canada, the United States, Denmark and Norway have all been trying
to assert jurisdiction over parts of the Arctic given it's believed to
contain up to a quarter of the Earth's undiscovered oil and gas.
"For a very long time, we conducted negotiations with our Norwegian
partners with regard to the distribution of the shelf in the northern
seas," Putin said.
"We conducted those talks over 10 years. They are always complicated
questions, particularly when they're connected to hydrocarbons, but we
nonetheless started these talks ... and it seems to be the best path to
resolve all questions with regards to the Arctic."
He brushed off Canadian objections to the Russian flag being dropped via
canister to the ocean floor near the North Pole in 2007, comparing it to
the so-called space race of the 1960s.
"That was a non-governmental act; it was more of an emotional act and I
don't see anything scary in it," he said.
"The Americans in their time stood on the moon and put their flag there,
but we aren't arguing with them for what they did and we don't talk about
how they have ambitions to take over the moon. Thank God we are developing
co-operation in space."
============================
Please Distribute
*Putin to Canada: "Room for compromise on Arctic, not on Ukraine"*
------------------------------
https://ca.news.yahoo.com/
*Associated Press/Canadian Pressvia Yahoo News -
Canadahttps://ca.news.yahoo.
*May 23, 2014*
*Putin talks back to Canada: sees room for compromise on Arctic, not on
UkraineBy The Canadian Press*
*ST. PETERSBURG, Russia -* Vladimir Putin had tough talk for Canada on
Saturday, saying he understands Canadian concerns about Arctic sovereignty
but Canada's stance on Russia's involvement in Ukraine is far more puzzling.
The Russian president suggested Canada's physical distance from Ukraine
meant it had little business meddling in the conflict, adding that Russia
acted within the scope of international law when it annexed the Crimean
peninsula in March.
"Look at where Canada is, and look at where Ukraine and Russia are," he
said in a question-and-answer session in St. Petersburg with senior
representatives of international news agencies, including The Canadian Press
"Neither Canada nor the U.S. have the same amount of interests in Ukraine
as Russia does."
Other than Ukraine and Russia, Canada is home to the largest population of
Ukrainians in the world. Prime Minister Stephen Harper has called for a
"complete reversal" of Russia's actions in Crimea and has levelled
sanctions against a slate of Russian officials and institutions.
Putin says he'd be happy to meet with Harper regarding Ukraine, including
in Normandy during D-Day events next month.
"We are ready for discussion, including with the prime minister," he said.
"And I have spoken with him various times at summits on various issues and
questions. If there is such a necessity or desire now, we are ready."
But on the eve of Ukraine's presidential election, Putin accused the West
of paying short shrift to Russia's interests in Ukraine.
"Where is the guarantee that, after the forceful change of power, Ukraine
will not tomorrow end up in NATO?" Putin asked.
"We hear only one answer, as if on a record: Every nation has a right
determine on its own the security system in which it wants to live, and
that doesn't concern you."
Putin has said that part of what motivated Russia to annex Crimea was to
prevent NATO ships from assembling in the strategic Black Sea peninsula.
The West hopes Sunday's vote could help ease the crisis in eastern Europe;
the Russian leader has promised to respect the results.
As for Canada's concerns about sovereignty in the Arctic, Putin says he
intends to respect international law in the region and to negotiate with
all interested nations.
Russia, Canada, the United States, Denmark and Norway have all been trying
to assert jurisdiction over parts of the Arctic given it's believed to
contain up to a quarter of the Earth's undiscovered oil and gas.
"For a very long time, we conducted negotiations with our Norwegian
partners with regard to the distribution of the shelf in the northern
seas," Putin said.
"We conducted those talks over 10 years. They are always complicated
questions, particularly when they're connected to hydrocarbons, but we
nonetheless started these talks ... and it seems to be the best path to
resolve all questions with regards to the Arctic."
He brushed off Canadian objections to the Russian flag being dropped via
canister to the ocean floor near the North Pole in 2007, comparing it to
the so-called space race of the 1960s.
"That was a non-governmental act; it was more of an emotional act and I
don't see anything scary in it," he said.
"The Americans in their time stood on the moon and put their flag there,
but we aren't arguing with them for what they did and we don't talk about
how they have ambitions to take over the moon. Thank God we are developing
co-operation in space."
============================
Sun May 25, 2014 6:56 pm (PDT) . Posted by:
"Rick Rozoff" rwrozoff
http://rickrozoff.wordpress.
NATO Trains Georgian Troops For Global Response Force
Rick Rozoff
The website of the Georgian Defense Ministry reports that troops from the South Caucasus nation have recently undergone intensive training at the U.S. Army Europe's Joint Multinational Command Training Center in Hohenfels, Germany in preparation for incorporation into the NATO Response Force.
The 12th Battalion of the 1st Infantry Brigade completed what was described as special training within the framework of the NATO Operational Capabilities Concept.
The Georgian forces participated in both command post and field exercises in Germany after ten months of previous training in their homeland where the U.S. Defense Department has trained local troops since 2002 for deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan and, whether deliberately or otherwise, for Georgia's attack on South Ossetia and war with Russia six years ago this August.
The Defense Ministry's account of the recently concluded training did not identify the nationality or nationalities of the officers who ran the exercises, although it is to be assumed that they were from the U.S. and other NATO nations.
Georgia is one of four NATO candidates selected by the U.S.-dominated military alliance to join the Response Force. The other three are Ukraine, Sweden and Finland.
The U.S. and its Western military allies have paired Georgia and Ukraine for simultaneous NATO accession since at least 2008 when, at the bloc's summit in Bucharest, Romania, they were assured of eventual full membership. The month after the war with Russia, September 2008, NATO established a NATO-Georgia Commission and two months afterwards granted both Georgia and Ukraine an Annual National Programme, a modality employed for the first time to circumvent or substitute for the traditional Membership Action Plan which is the final stage before full accession.
It is worth noting that the inauguration of NATO's Response Force, described by NATO as "a mechanism to generate a high readiness and technologically advanced force package made up of land, air, sea and special force components that can be deployed quickly on operations wherever needed," occurred in 2006 with massive land-air-naval exercises in Cape Verde off the western coast of Africa code-named Steadfast Jaguar. The war games lasted two weeks and consisted of 7,000 troops as well as over 600 vehicles and the flagship of the U.S. Sixth Fleet, USS Mount Whitney, which in the interim has paid visits to the Black Sea, including to Georgia less than a month after the August 2008 war with Russia.
The military alliance specifies the role of the Response Force as including, in reference to NATO's collective military obligation clause, "providing an immediate response capability for conducting collective defence of Alliance members in the event of an Article 5 operation" and "acting as the initial force deployment as a precursor to deployment of a much larger force, whether that be for Article 5 or for any other operation."
Decidedly, Georgian military forces are not being prepared for hu
==============================
Stop NATO e-mail list home page with archives and search engine:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/
Stop NATO website and articles:
http://rickrozoff.wordpress.
To subscribe for individual e-mails or the daily digest, unsubscribe, and otherwise change subscription status:
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==============================
NATO Trains Georgian Troops For Global Response Force
Rick Rozoff
The website of the Georgian Defense Ministry reports that troops from the South Caucasus nation have recently undergone intensive training at the U.S. Army Europe's Joint Multinational Command Training Center in Hohenfels, Germany in preparation for incorporation into the NATO Response Force.
The 12th Battalion of the 1st Infantry Brigade completed what was described as special training within the framework of the NATO Operational Capabilities Concept.
The Georgian forces participated in both command post and field exercises in Germany after ten months of previous training in their homeland where the U.S. Defense Department has trained local troops since 2002 for deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan and, whether deliberately or otherwise, for Georgia's attack on South Ossetia and war with Russia six years ago this August.
The Defense Ministry's account of the recently concluded training did not identify the nationality or nationalities of the officers who ran the exercises, although it is to be assumed that they were from the U.S. and other NATO nations.
Georgia is one of four NATO candidates selected by the U.S.-dominated military alliance to join the Response Force. The other three are Ukraine, Sweden and Finland.
The U.S. and its Western military allies have paired Georgia and Ukraine for simultaneous NATO accession since at least 2008 when, at the bloc's summit in Bucharest, Romania, they were assured of eventual full membership. The month after the war with Russia, September 2008, NATO established a NATO-Georgia Commission and two months afterwards granted both Georgia and Ukraine an Annual National Programme, a modality employed for the first time to circumvent or substitute for the traditional Membership Action Plan which is the final stage before full accession.
It is worth noting that the inauguration of NATO's Response Force, described by NATO as "a mechanism to generate a high readiness and technologically advanced force package made up of land, air, sea and special force components that can be deployed quickly on operations wherever needed," occurred in 2006 with massive land-air-naval exercises in Cape Verde off the western coast of Africa code-named Steadfast Jaguar. The war games lasted two weeks and consisted of 7,000 troops as well as over 600 vehicles and the flagship of the U.S. Sixth Fleet, USS Mount Whitney, which in the interim has paid visits to the Black Sea, including to Georgia less than a month after the August 2008 war with Russia.
The military alliance specifies the role of the Response Force as including, in reference to NATO's collective military obligation clause, "providing an immediate response capability for conducting collective defence of Alliance members in the event of an Article 5 operation" and "acting as the initial force deployment as a precursor to deployment of a much larger force, whether that be for Article 5 or for any other operation."
Decidedly, Georgian military forces are not being prepared for hu
==============================
Stop NATO e-mail list home page with archives and search engine:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/
Stop NATO website and articles:
http://rickrozoff.wordpress.
To subscribe for individual e-mails or the daily digest, unsubscribe, and otherwise change subscription status:
stopnato-subscribe@
==============================
Sun May 25, 2014 7:04 pm (PDT) . Posted by:
"Rick Rozoff" rwrozoff
******************************
Anti-war essays, poems, short stories and literary excerpts:
http://rickrozoff.wordpress.
American writers on peace and against war:
http://rickrozoff.wordpress.
******************************
Anti-war essays, poems, short stories and literary excerpts:
http://rickrozoff.wordpress.
American writers on peace and against war:
http://rickrozoff.wordpress.
******************************
Sun May 25, 2014 7:04 pm (PDT) . Posted by:
"Boyle, Francis A" facboyle
Francis A. Boyle
Law Building
504 E. Pennsylvania Ave.
Champaign, IL 61820 USA
217-333-7954 (phone)
217-244-1478 (fax)
(personal comments only)
From: Boyle, Francis A
Sent: Sunday, May 25, 2014 1:54 PM
To: Killeacle
Subject: Potemkin Village Elections in Ukraine
Elections in Ukraine will make things worse, not better - expert
[Elections in Ukraine will make things worse, not better - expert]
© Photo: RIA Novosti/Mikhail Voskresensky
As the violence in Ukraine shows no signs of abating, major world powers still hope to resolve the situation through political means. Francis Boyle, professor at the Illinois College of Law and the author of "Talking America’s Toughest Questions," expressed his opinion about the ongoing presidential election in Ukraine during his interview with Radio VR.
Do you believe that these presidential elections can become a turning point in the longstanding Ukrainian crisis? What results can we expect in the immediate future?
I'm afraid they could make the situation worse, based on Bosnia’s precedent. I was Bosnia’s lawyer during the war against them by Serbia and when Bosnia held elections, soon thereafter the whole situation degenerated into a civil war and genocide. So, I'm afraid things could get a lot worse from what they are now. These are really Potemkin village elections setup by Obama and NATO to provide nothing more than a fig leaf of legitimacy to the neo-Nazi junta in Kiev. So, I can’t say I’m very optimistic about what is going to happen here.
When the Ukrainian crisis emerged last autumn, one of the key demands at Maidan was fair and democratic government without oligarchs. But what we are seeing now billionaire Petro Proshenko and Yulia Timoshenko are running for presidential post – both with much of support. Doesn't it mean the oligarchs are still playing the upper hand in Ukraine's politics?
Right! And the oligarchs are being used as a front here for the Right Sector and Svoboda, and the other neo-Nazi groups. We know for a fact that they immediately took all the oligarchs down in Israel and put them in power in the Russian-speaking areas of Ukraine. And they are now bringing in mercenaries from the West that they are paying for and we had the massacre in Odessa, the massacre in Mariupol.
I'm afraid we might be seeing more massacres in the future because there is no evidence that the Obama administration wants to pressure their protégés there in Kiev to negotiate in good faith with the Russian speakers in the east and south of Ukraine. I see no evidence of this at all. And again, the purpose of this election is just to give a thin veneer of democratic legitimacy to this neo-Nazi junta currently running power in Kiev, but using oligarchs as front men.
What are your forecasts for the reaction of the world community? Do you think that is already prewritten or could we expect something more objective?
I don’t see anything objective coming out of the US or NATO states. It looks like “the chocolate king” is going to beat “the gas queen” and they will immediately hail Mr. Poroshenko as the president of Ukraine. There is perhaps some hope there that Mr. Poroshenko has dealt in the past with the Russian Government and has done business, and he’s worked both sides of the isle with both Yanukovich and Yushchenko.
Maybe, Poroshenko will tell his Western sponsors that, you know, we really need to meet in good faith with the Russian speakers. And indeed, I know his comment, that the first place he would visit would be Donbas. That would be a great help to go out there and meet with people living there, and try to hear their concerns.
If these elections pass off successfully and bring stability to Ukraine, will it help to ease tensions on the international scene and resolve confrontations between Russia and West?
As I said, I would hope so. President Putin has said that he would like to see Ukraine that is stabilized and not on the verge of a civil war. I don’t think it is in anyone’s interest for this to happen. Certainly not Russia’s interest, which is why President Putin said he would respect the results of the elections. So, we will have to see.
But the alternative scenario is that the new president could very well invite in the NATO forces on the grounds of Article 51 of the UN Charter – the right of collective self-defense. So, it could go either way. I don’t know.
But again, based on the precedent of Bosnia and what happened in the elections there, it doesn’t look too promising. I'm afraid these elections will make things worse and not better.
What we really needed were not the elections, but negotiations with the people in Donetsk and Lugansk. And now they’ve set up this Republic of New Russia. That’s what we need – we need negotiations here, not elections and so far we don’t have them.
Read more: http://voiceofrussia.com/2014_
