Nato

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said Monday that the number of NATO troops on high readiness will multiply by over seven times as part of its largest overhaul since the Cold War and in response to Russian aggression in Ukraine. The NATO Response Force (NRF) is currently made up of around 40,000 troops. The NRF can quickly be tailored and adjusted in size and capability to match the demands of the operation, according to the alliance's website. "We will transform the NATO response force and increase the number of our high readiness forces to well over 300,000," Stoltenberg told reporters ahead of a NATO summit in Madrid that begins on Tuesday. NATO leaders are expected to discuss steps to take to continue to support Ukraine in the war, as well as Sweden's and Finland's bid for membership in NATO at the summit. This is a breaking news story and it will be updated. … [Read more...] about NATO’s army to get seven times larger in biggest overhaul since Cold War

A Russian state television host warned that the country is ready to confront NATO as tensions between Moscow and the West continue to escalate over the war in Ukraine. Speaking on the state-controlled television Channel 1 on Sunday, television host Vladimir Solovyov said that Russia was only using 18 percent of its army in Ukraine and its military was fighting at "a peacetime" size so it was ready for "a direct confrontation" with the international military alliance if necessary. Andrey Gurulyov, State Duma deputy and former deputy commander of Russia's southern military district, who was also speaking on the show, boasted that Russia's nuclear capability meant it can "liquidate all means of an attack that threaten the territory of Russia." Responding, Solovyov said: "That's why it's understood why we're currently using less than 18 percent of our Armed Forces, which is our peacetime army because we are ready for a direct confrontation with the armed forces of the entire … [Read more...] about Russia ready for direct confrontation with all of NATO, state TV host says

Spain is shifting its foreign policy towards Africa while lobbying the EU and NATO for support to address migration from the continent, aggravated by the Ukraine invasion, two senior government officials and two diplomatic sources told Reuters. Spain will use a NATO summit in Madrid this week to press its case, and is likely to ask for increased intelligence sharing by the alliance including on issues related to migration, the diplomats said. Even before Russia’s Feb. 24 invasion of Ukraine, Socialist prime minister Pedro Sanchez had revived a strategy mothballed by previous governments of working with African partners to contain migration and to tackle root causes such as instability and climate change, two officials close to him said. That drive has now taken on more urgency, they added. “We are looking for good relations with all the neighbours around us and jointly managing phenomena that no one, not even the most powerful state on the planet, can deal with on its own,” … [Read more...] about Spain Turns to Africa, Lobbies NATO, Allies Over Ukraine-driven Migration

This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate 65 ELMAU, Germany (AP) — The Latest on the G-7 summit, the annual meeting of the leading democratic economies, which this year is being held in the Bavarian Alps in Germany; and on the summit of NATO leaders that will start on Tuesday in Madrid: NATO secretary general Jens Stoltenberg says the military alliance wants to increase the number of its rapid reaction forces from the current 40,000 troops to 300,000. Speaking at a press conference Monday ahead of a NATO summit later this week in Madrid, Stoltenberg said allies … [Read more...] about Live updates | NATO to boost reaction force, Ukraine support

NATO will increase the number of its forces at high readiness massively to over 300,000 amid Russia's ongoing war in Ukraine , Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said on Monday. “We will transform the NATO response force and increase the number of our high readiness forces to well over 300,000,” he told reporters ahead of a NATO summit in Madrid later this week. NATO’s quick reaction force, the NATO response force, so far has some 40,000 troops. At the Madrid summit, NATO will also change its language on Russia that in the alliance’s last strategy from 2010 was still described as a strategic partner. “That will not be the case in the strategic concept that we will agree in Madrid,” Stoltenberg said. “I expect that allies will state clearly that Russia poses a direct threat to our security, to our values, to the rules-based international order.” … [Read more...] about NATO to massively increase reaction forces

This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate 26 ELMAU, Germany (AP) — Leading economic powers conferred by video link with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Monday as they underscored their commitment to Ukraine for “as long as it takes” with plans to pursue a price cap on Russian oil, raise tariffs on Russian goods and impose other new sanctions. In addition, the U.S. was preparing to announce the purchase of an advanced surface-to-air missile system for Kyiv to help Ukraine fight back against Vladimir Putin’s aggression. The new aid and efforts by the Group of Seven leaders to punish Moscow come as Zelenskyy has openly worried that the West has become fatigued by the cost of a war that is contributing to soaring energy costs and price hikes on essential goods around the globe. U.S. … [Read more...] about G-7 leaders confer with Zelenskyy, prep new aid for Ukraine

To look at it, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine was not a total shocker because of its historical ties and shared Soviet history. For Russia, Ukraine was a way to regain its lost glory at the peak of the Soviet expansion. However, a more strategic and immediate reason for Russia’s invasion lies in the eastward expansion of NATO and the pro-western stance of the current Ukrainian government, which Russia considers a threat lurking on its borders. On the other hand, a poll conducted by the International Republican Institute revealed that Ukrainians perceive Russia as an imperial power seeking to trample on their sovereignty and territorial integrity, with nearly 80 per cent of the population wanting to join the European Union. The world is still coming to terms with Russia’s Ukrainian invasion and the scale of the consequent humanitarian catastrophe. On February 24, 2022, in a televised address, Putin ordered military tanks to run over Ukraine in a “special military operation” to … [Read more...] about Will The Unification Of The West Reside In World War II Style Alliances?

His statement translates into an unequivocal opposition to the Yoon Suk-yeol administration’s attempt to reign in the police, which will become more powerful when they take away all investigative powers from the prosecution in September. The police chief made the announcement about one hour after Minister of the Interior and Safety Lee Sang-min, who commands the police, presented a plan to create a bureau inside the ministry to efficiently control the police. But Kim’s argument is not convincing. After the passage in April of the revisions of the laws by the Democratic Party (DP), the police can wield enormous power extending to investigations on communist activities and crimes of soldiers before enlistment. About the recommendations by the advisory board, Interior Minister Lee said they are just a part of an effort to “normalize the aberrant ways of the Blue House directly commanding the police by bypassing the ministry” in the past. First of all, it is not a responsible … [Read more...] about Police chief’s suspicious announcement to resign

By ZEKE MILLER ELMAU, Germany (AP) — One year ago, Joe Biden strode into his first Group of Seven summit as president and confidently told the closest U.S. allies that “America is Back.” Now, many of them are worrying that America is backsliding. As Biden meets this week in the Bavarian Alps with the heads of G-7 leading democratic economies, he carries with him the domestic baggage of political unrest, shocking mass shootings and the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to end constitutional protections for abortion. Biden’s 2021 summit was meant as a palate cleanser to the “America First” ideology of his predecessor, President Donald Trump. Embracing multilateralism and global partnerships and restoring faith in America’s alliances — especially NATO’s mutual self-defense pact — were top on his agenda. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said of Biden, “We’re totally on the same page.” Biden’s election was seen by most allies as an American reset, returning to norms honed over … [Read more...] about Tale of 2 summits: ‘America’s back’ to America’s backsliding