NATO - An Insane Exercise in Empire Building?

Russia could gain military dominance over NATO,

commander says

By Danielle Haynes

U.S. Gen. Curtis Scaparrotti, supreme allied commander, Europe, gives a press conference at the end of the 178th Military Committee in Chiefs of Defence Session at NATO alliance headquarters in Brussels, Belgium, on Wednesday. Photo by Stephanie LeCocq/EPA-EFE

UPI -- Growing modernization could give the Russian military dominance over NATO if the military bloc fails to adapt, the top commander said Wednesday.

U.S. Army Gen. Curtis Scaparrotti, NATO supreme allied commander, Europe, said in a news conference in Brussels that he has concerns about Russia's military.

"I think that, as an alliance, we are dominant. There are domains within this that were challenged. I think cyber is one of those. [Russia is] very competent in that," he said.

"There are others where because of the modernization you noted, while we are dominant, we will not be in five years per se if we aren't adapting like this to include our structure but also within the nations, our capabilities, across the military functional areas as well as our domains."

Scaparrotti's comments come amid two days of talks in Brussels in which alliance defense heads are working on plans to building two new command headquarters to counteract Russian aggression. The new headquarters would allow a faster movement of NATO forces across Europe.

Not one, but two new command headquarters. Is that not empire building plain and simple? How would two new command headquarters allow for the faster movement of troops unless NATO is planning on amassing very large numbers of troops in these command centers. If they do that, is that not escalating the threat to Russia? Will that not invite a response? Of course it will. That's part of the plan. They respond, then we respond with something else, then they respond, etc., etc. It's madness!

"A resurgence of Russia as a strategic competitor, growing unrest and instability in Africa and the Middle East, as well as terrorism, [are] reshaping our strategic environment," he said.

NATO - North Atlantic Treaty Organization! What have they to do with Africa and the Middle East? Absolutely nothing! Are they aiming for global domination? Is there purpose to protect Europe and North America from Russia? Why do the appear to be the aggressors?

The relationship between Russia and much of the West, including NATO, has been strained since 2014, when Russia annexed Crimea from Ukraine.

We've been through this before, but very quickly - Russia was promised by the west that they would not attempt to absorb eastern Europe when the Iron Curtain fell ending the CSSR. 

Since then, western governments and NGOs (read George Soros' Open Society Foundation) arranged the Orange Revolution that overthrew the elected President, a Russia-friendly leader. He was replaced in the coup by a western-friendly President who quickly moved the country toward membership in NATO.

This was a dramatic provocation and a serious threat to the continuation of Russia's only naval base in the Black Sea, at Sevastopol, Crimea.

Does it matter that Crimea was captured without a shot being fired? Or that the majority of Crimeans voted to leave Ukraine and re-join Russia? 

So the obvious question is, where is the big Russian threat? Are other border countries seeing activity that would cause them to believe that a Russian invasion was imminent? If Russia is building up arms on its borders is it not in response to western build-ups? Who is the aggressor here, and why?

I believe NATO is the aggressor and I believe they are doing it for two reasons neither of which have anything to do with Russia. They are: 1) selling weapons like cotton candy at a carnival, 2) they are empire building, perhaps with global ambitions.

I have said in the past that I thought Vladimir Putin had ambitions of rebuilding the Soviet empire. I have seen very little in the last 3 years to support that theory. It is not Russia that frightens me now, but NATO scares the hell out of me.

And NATO in cahoots with Donald Trump, who is rebuilding the economy of the USA by selling billions of dollars worth of arms to countries all over the world, is simply insane. The policy of destabilizing as many sectors in the world as possible is very profitable for American and many western economies. And that's what it's all about!