European governments are just beginning to see through the bullying of USA/NATO for the reality that it is - sales tactics for US armaments. Russophobia, or is it Russohysteria, is an integral part of it.
‘NATO solidarity clause is called Article 5, not article F-35’ – French defense minister
(L) Lockheed Martin F-35B © Reuters / US Air Force / Staff Sgt. Joely Santiago; (R) French forces
© Reuters / Guillaume Horcajuelo
Europe must move away from full dependency on American weapon supplies, the French defense minister stressed, slamming President Donald Trump’s “conditional” approach towards NATO and his European allies.
Expressing concern that Trump’s idea of NATO’s solidarity is “conditional on allies buying this or that equipment,” the French Minister of the Armed Forces, Florence Parly, wondered if the US commitment to the military block will continue to be “perennial.”
The alliance should be unconditional, otherwise,
it is not an alliance. NATO’s solidarity clause
is called Article 5, not article F-35.
Despite the White House pushing their allies to buy more American weapons, developing European autonomous capabilities in the military field is crucial to national security and essential to moving away from Washington's dominance, Parly argued, noting the US arms industry currently supplies NATO with 100 percent of its strategic bombers and missile defense systems, 92 percent of its drones, and 91 percent of its air tankers.
US arms industry currently supplies NATO with
100 percent of its strategic bombers and missile defense systems,
92 percent of its drones, and
91 percent of its air tankers.
In January, Germany’s Ministry of Defense officially ruled out purchasing the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter to replace its aging Tornado fleet and is currently considering upgrading its air power to a fourth-generation Eurofighter Typhoon. Competing against the Franco-German armaments cooperation is Boeing’s F-18 Super Hornet. Unlike the Typhoon, the F-18 is certified to carry US-made nuclear bombs as part of NATO's nuclear sharing agreement.
While stressing that France and other NATO allies will do their “best” to spend two percent of their GDP on defense, Parly also called on the US to respect the “autonomy” of European nations to build up their own defense bloc independent of NATO.
“Building a European autonomy should never be seen as a move against the United States,” Parly told the Atlantic Council, in reference to the idea of a joint European Defense Force as advocated by French President Emmanuel Macron. “We need to step up to help without waiting for the US to always foot the bill.”
Weary of Donald Trump’s NATO diplomacy and use of European security as a bargaining chip, last year French President Emmanuel Macron resurrected a decades-old idea of creating a “real European army” independent from its key partner on the other side of the Atlantic. While Germany voiced support for Macron's proposition to better protect the continent against the perceived Russian threat, Trump found the idea simply “insulting,” reiterating that NATO members must spend two per cent of GDP on their protection.
Russia is no threat to Europe and hasn't been since Glasnost. NATO is entirely obsolete except for the hysteria they have created about Russia. This, and arms sales, is the only reason for NATO's continued existence. They should have been disbanded almost 30 years ago.
I believe in the past 28 years, NATO has contributed to several wars, revolutions and rumours of wars (ie fear-mongering). They are a danger to peace on earth and a colossal waste of time and money. That's just my humble opinion!
Germany: US ambassador Richard Grenell should be expelled,
says FDP deputy leader
US Ambassador Richard Grenell is acting like "a high commissioner of an occupying power," the deputy leader of the Free Democrats (FDP) has said. Grenell has also drawn rebuffs from Germany's two governing parties.
US Ambassador Richard Grenell in 2018 (Getty Images/O. Andersen)
Wolfgang Kubicki, the deputy chairman of the opposition Free Democrats (FDP), said Richard Grenell's repeated interference in German sovereignty should prompt Foreign Minister Heiko Maas to immediately declare Grenell persona non grata.
"Any US diplomat who acts like a high commissioner of an occupying power must learn that our tolerance also knows its limits," said Kubicki, who is also one of five deputy speakers of Germany's Bundestag parliament.
Wolfgang Kubicki during a plenary session of the Bundestag (picture-alliance/dpa/B. von Jutrczenka)
Grenell had on Tuesday criticized Germany's military spending plans within NATO as insufficient, prompting Kubicki to accuse the envoy of "interfering" repeatedly in political issues of a sovereign country.
Grenell's criticism of Germany's defense spending came weeks after he demanded that Berlin halt Nord Stream 2, a gas pipeline being laid across the Baltic Sea to deliver gas from Russia to Germany, and threatened firms involved in the project with sanctions.
The USA does not want Russia's Nordstream 2 gas pipeline to be completed because they want Europe to buy American gas even though it would be considerably more expensive.
Carsten Schneider, caucus manager of the Social Democrats (SPD) within the parliament, told the German news agency DPA on Tuesday that "Mr Grenell is a complete diplomatic failure."
Grenell's behavior, said Schneider, reminded him of "a flail," a farmyard term for somebody who thrashes around wildly, adding that "Mr Grenell damages trans-Atlantic relations with his repeated clumsy provocations."
Turkey Can't Have Both F-35s and Russian Missile System,
NATO Commander Says
FILE - In this file photo taken Dec. 16, 2015 and provided by the Russian Defense Ministry Press Service,
Russian S-400 long-range air defense missile systems are deployed at Hemeimeem air base in Syria.
(Vadim Savitsky/Russian Defense Ministry Press Service via AP, File)
Military.com | By Richard Sisk
Army Gen. Curtis M. Scaparrotti said Tuesday that the U.S. should block sales of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter to Turkey if it goes ahead with its plan to buy the advanced S-400 anti-air missile system from Russia.
"My best military advice is that we don't follow through" on supplying F-35s to NATO ally Turkey unless it backs out of the S-400 deal with Moscow, said Scaparrotti, who is dual-hatted as head of U.S. European Command and Supreme Allied Commander of NATO.
At a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing, Scaparrotti said he has two reasons for objecting to Turkey getting the S-400 system, which Russia has billed as a weapons system to counter the F-35 in its sales pitch to Turkey, Arab states and China.
"If they accept the S-400 to establish it in Turkey, there is first the issue that it's not interoperable with NATO systems, nor is it interoperable inside of our integrated missile defense system," he said.
"The second has to do with the F-35. It presents a problem to all of our aircraft, but specifically the F-35, I believe," Scaparrotti said.
And the real reason is, they want Turkey to buy American made missile defense systems!!!
The dispute over the F-35 sale comes at a time of increasing friction between the U.S. and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan over concerns about the way forward in Syria as the U.S. plans to withdraw troops, as well as Turkey's growing ties with Iran and Russia.
Since 2017, Turkey has been negotiating the estimated $2.5 billion purchase of the mobile S-400 system, dubbed the SA-21 Growler by NATO and called the Triumf system by Russia.
In a two-day visit to Turkey last April, Russian President Vladimir Putin said, "A priority task in the sphere of military technical cooperation is the implementation of the contract for supplies of S-400 Triumf missile systems to Turkey."
Then-Turkish Defense Minister Fikri Isik said that Turkey was turning to Moscow after the U.S. and NATO allies refused help in upgrading its air defenses. "They don't agree to the transfer of technologies in the sphere of air defense systems to us" and "do not make price concessions," he said.
Under previous agreements with the U.S., Turkey also had plans to buy more than 100 F-35As, the conventional takeoff and landing model of the stealth fighter. Turkish pilots are already training on the F-35 at Luke Air Force Base, Arizona.
"I can confirm we have two Turkish jets [from the proposed sale] here at Luke flying in the 63rd Fighter Squadron and several Turkish pilots in training to fly the F-35," 56th Fighter Wing spokeswoman Maj. Rebecca Heyse said Tuesday. "All our jets at Luke are pooled within the squadrons, so on any day U.S. pilots assigned to the 63rd could be flying Turkish or USAF jets while the Turkish pilots could be flying Turkish or USAF jets."
To counter the Russian S-400 sale, the U.S. State Department in December approved the potential sale to Turkey of the Patriot missile system and related equipment for $3.5 billion.
The U.S. offer, if it were accepted by Turkey and approved by Congress, would include 80 Patriot MIM-104E Guidance Enhanced Missiles (GEM-T), 60 PAC-3 Missile Segment Enhancement (MSE) missiles, and related equipment, the State Department said.
"This is a huge decision for Turkey. I would hope that they reconsider this one decision on S-400," Scaparrotti said under questioning by Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, D-New Hampshire, at the hearing.
On Tuesday, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Matthew Palmer and James Jeffrey, the U.S. special envoy for Syria, were in Ankara for meetings with their Turkish counterparts. Palmer was expected to focus on the S-400 sale and the potential risk that going ahead with the deal would scrap the U.S. agreement to sell F-35s to Turkey, the Hurriyet Daily News reported.
In other words, we don't care if we've signed a contract; you buy our Patriot system or forget the F-35s. Personally, I think they should forget the F-35s.
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