NATO’s turn against Russia plotted long before Ukraine events — diplomat

Source : http://tass.ru/en

MOSCOW, June 30. /TASS/. NATO’s return to the Cold War era security perception was planned long before the Ukrainian crisis, Russia’s envoy to the alliance, Alexander Grushko, said on Tuesday.

"Today, the whole NATO machine is in fact turning to the East, in other words is going back to the sources. This is an extremely dangerous tendency as it envisages long-term trends," he told a video link-up between Moscow and Brussels.

"NATO links the need for such a turn to Russia’s alleged aggressive actions in Ukraine," the diplomat said. "But NATO cannot but see what efforts are made by Russia to ensure the full implementation of the Minsk agreements."

Not a single Russia-NATO cooperation program works — Russian diplomat

"However, those decisions that are taken are no way linked to the Ukrainian crisis, what is becoming another evidence that the military and political turn of NATO was devised long before the Ukrainian events," he said.

This turn comes first of all as the "epoch of major operations is over, showing NATO’s failure to adopt to new security conditions." In order to prove that this tool is still in demand, "the alliance has found nothing better than to return to the security perception of the Cold War time."

NATO will never invade Russia - McFaul

Source : http://m.rbth.co.uk

Former U.S. ambassador to Russia Michael McFaul has said NATO is not planning to invade Russia and there is no need for the Russian leadership to deploy S-400 air defense systems on its Western borders. "NATO will never invade Russia," he twitted on Sunday.

The former ambassador said the Russian leadership is groundlessly concerned about the deployment of NATO armaments near Russian borders. "Russians should also relax about NATO defensive weapons near Russian borders since Russia tells us no plan to invade NATO countries," McFaul wrote.

"Only a complete fool would invade Russia. Thankfully no fools running NATO countries," the diplomat noted.

Previously the Russian Defense Ministry announced new S-400 "Triumf" long-range surface-to-air missile (SAM) systems and "Pantsir-S" combined SAM and anti-aircraft artillery systems will enter service in the air defense divisions stationed in the Northwestern Federal District before the end of 2015.

"In all, more than 30 sets of modern SAM systems will enter service in the air defense divisions of the Western Military District (WMD) before the end of 2015 under the State Defense Order-2015 program," the WMD said in a press release.

NATO Buildup in Poland Portends Catastrophic Consequences – Vice Admiral

Source : http://www.strategic-culture.org

 

Commenting on the continuing buildup of NATO forces on Russia's borders, including a decision to beef up the rapid response force, and the announcement that the US would deploy heavy equipment in six Eastern European states, including Poland, Vice Admiral Marek Toczek told Sputnik that the dangerous escalation could have catastrophic consequences.

"I consider this to be another step in the escalation of tensions in the situation which has developed around [the conflict in] eastern Ukraine, Toczek stated. "I have always considered that such situations must be resolved exclusively via diplomatic talks," he added.

The Polish Navy veteran turned-politician stated that "this conflict cannot be resolved by military means, especially given the scale being considered. Either this is saber rattling, or a harbinger of something that can affect the people of Eastern and Central Europe, and not only them, –a harbinger of extreme catastrophe of a kind humanity has never known. In Poland there are many people –their numbers difficult to estimate in percentage terms, but very likely a majority, who are against these sorts of political decisions."

Toczek noted that Polish officials' enthusiastic approval of the initiatives to station equipment on Polish soil is aimed in part as a pre-election measure ahead of upcoming parliamentary elections this fall. "I do not believe that this is the way to resolve the conflict, and, by and large, I am very concerned that the leadership of my country is resolved to take such steps and such actions," the official noted.

Asked to comment on the contradictions between NATO's recent announcements and Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg's statements earlier this month that Russia does not pose an "immediate threat" to any NATO country and that "our aim is to cooperate" with Moscow, Toczek responded by noting that he is convinced "that we are dealing here with a manifestation of a kind of schizophrenia. Not in relation to the politician who uttered these words –it's difficult to disagree with him. However, pressures from various lobbies, which operate surreptitiously, and which are difficult to identify, result in informational chaos, and this also results in a poor understanding of what is truly going on by a significant portion of society."

Marek Toczek served in the Polish Navy between 1965 and 1996, rising to the rank of Vice Admiral in 1994. In the mid-1990s, he left the navy and became the president of the Polish Front, running for a seat in parliament during the 2001 parliamentary elections on the party list of the Alternative Social Movement. Since then, he has been a vice president of the social democratic Polish Labour Party — August 80.

Ash Carter: NATO Unites Around New Security Playbook against Russia

Source : http://www.defense.gov

WASHINGTON, June 26, 2015 – NATO allies are growing more united despite Russian aggression in Europe, and the alliance has a new approach to meeting security challenges to the east and south, Defense Secretary Ash Carter said in Brussels yesterday.

As part of a June 21-26 trip to Germany, Estonia and Belgium for bilateral and multilateral meetings with European defense ministers, Carter participated in his first NATO defense Ministers meeting as U.S. secretary of defense.

The secretary also visited U.S. troops and those from allied and partner nations during his five-day trip.

“Like my visits to Berlin, Munster and Tallinn,” Carter said during a news conference after the NATO meeting, “my meetings here with my NATO counterparts in Brussels affirmed that while some in Europe are trying to create division, ... NATO allies are only growing more united in their resolve to move forward together."

New Security Challenges

To meet new security challenges in the south and the east, Carter said, NATO is using a new playbook and leveraging lessons of history and its own strengths. During the meeting, Carter described a new U.S. strategic approach to aggressive and threatening Russian behavior.

Included in the new playbook is NATO's Very High Readiness Joint Task Force, which Carter said DoD will support with a range of enabling capabilities.

These include intratheater and strategic airlift; aerial intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance; combat sustainment support; mid-air refueling; an air and space expeditionary wing; naval support assets; precision joint fires; combat helicopters; a deployable command post; and special operations air and maritime capabilities, the secretary said.

Adjusting Presence

The department also is adjusting its posture and presence to help facilitate training and exercises and make NATO member forces more agile, mobile and responsive.

“As I announced in Estonia,” Carter said, “the United States will temporarily stage in Central and Eastern Europe a pre-positioned European activity set of tanks, infantry-fighting vehicles, artillery and associated equipment needed for one armored brigade combat team.”

Two battalion sets are in Europe now, and a third will arrive shortly, he said, adding that NATO also is working to counter challenges such as cyber and hybrid warfare.

“In cyberspace, we're building on our commitment to strengthen NATO's Cyber Defense Center of Excellence so it can help nations develop cyber strategies, critical infrastructure protection plans, and cyber defense posture assessments,” the secretary noted.

Strengthening Cyber

Carter asked allies to increase their participation in cyber exercises and encouraged them to work toward meeting NATO's cyber defense targets so all meet the highest standards for cybersecurity.

“To make sure allied nations are prepared to counter hybrid warfare, we need to understand the tactics, techniques, procedures and resource implications required to do so,” Carter said, adding that he asked NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg to make this a priority at the next conference of defense ministers.

In a meeting of the NATO-Ukraine Commission and in a bilateral meeting with his Ukrainian counterpart, Carter reaffirmed the United States' commitment to Ukraine.

America's support for Ukraine totals $238 million so far in security assistance, the secretary said, and 300 U.S. paratroopers from the 173rd Airborne Brigade are in Yavoriv, training the Ukrainian national guard.

Resolute Support

In a meeting with Afghanistan's defense minister-designate, Acting Minister Masoom Stanikzai, and in a meeting of NATO’s Resolute Support mission, Carter said, he reiterated the shared commitment to helping Afghanistan ensure that gains made over a decade of war will endure.

Czech Military To Make New Acquisitions As Spending Rises

Source : http://www.defensenews.com

WARSAW — Lt. Gen. Josef Becvar, the chief of the General Staff of the Czech Armed Forces, has announced plans to acquire new armored personnel carriers (APCs), cannons, multi-purpose copters, radars, as well as personal weapons and gear for Czech troops, reports local news agency CTK.

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"We will probably buy [new weapons and equipment] this year," Becvar said. The country's increased defense budget will allow finance new acquisitions for the Czech military, according to the general.

Becvar said that the purchases will include new personal weapons and other gear for Czech troops; during the past few years, there have been no available funds for such acquisitions.

Czech Minister of Defense Martin Stropnicky confirmed these plans, and said that the armed forces require an overhaul with new technologies, as they continue to increase activities on foreign missions and joint military drills with allies.

"Our funds are currently at a reasonable level," Stropnicky said.

The Visegrad Four group, consisting of the Czech Republic, Poland, Slovakia and Hungary, has agreed to set up a joint European Union battlegroup, which is to be on stand-by in the first half of 2016. On April 23, defense ministers from the four countries adopted the Action Plan of the Visegrad Group Defense Cooperation, a strategic document which indicates that the V4 states aim to develop their defense capabilities in the fields of training and exercises, logistics support and special operations, among other areas.

Russia always knew that US missile defense was aimed against it and China — security chief

Source : http://tass.ru

ULAN-UDE, June 25. /TASS/. Russia has always known that the US missile defence system is directed against it and China, and now this is confirmed, Russian Security Council Secretary Nikolay Patrushev said. "We did know that it [missile defence system] was aimed, first and foremost, at Russia and China, but these events, which are taking place now, confirm this," he said.

"We cannot but respond to the threats emanating [from NATO]," Patrushev told reporters.

Patrushev noted that NATO was approaching Russia’s border incorporating some former Soviet republics. "NATO has approached our borders, it is in close proximity to us," he said.

Patrushev added that when creating elements of its missile defence system in eastern Europe the United States said that the aim was the protection from the threat posed by Iran. "Now the attitude towards Iran has changed, it maintains bilateral relations with Tehran, and a group of six world powers is working with Iran," he noted, adding that in this connection it would be logical to abandon plans to build the costly missile defence system. However, this is not happening.

Russia's Advanced S-400 Systems Could 'Neutralize NATO Airpower'

Source : http://sputniknews.com

Russia plans to boost air defense along its Western border by deploying a number of modern S-400 Triumf and Pantsir-S air defense systems as part of the country's large-scale program to modernize its military by 2020 and apparently in response to NATO's ongoing saber-rattling.

The S-400 "deployment in greater numbers along Russia's borders with NATO could challenge the latter's ability to achieve air dominance in the event of a conflict with Moscow," Zachary Keck said in an article titled "Watch Out, America: Russia Sends Super Advanced S-400 to NATO's Borders."

Russia's next-generation anti-aircraft weapon system can engage all types of aerial targets including aircraft, drones and ballistic and cruise missiles within the range of 250 miles at an altitude of nearly 19 miles.

The S-400 is equipped with three different types of missiles and is fitted with a radar that is capable of tracking up to 300 targets within the range of over 370 miles.

The brand new air defense system hence challenges the entire Western way of war, which "depends on the achievement of air supremacy," according to Robert Farley.

"At least in the early days of the war, the S-400 and its associated systems could neutralize NATO airpower, undermining one of the central pillars of the Western way of war," he wrote in a piece for the National Interest, adding that "NATO forces have not fought against a modern, capable air defense system in a very long time."

US Marines launch new deployments to Bulgaria to reassure allies

Source : http://www.marinecorpstimes.com

A U.S. Marine Corps unit equipped with tanks, light armored vehicles and artillery will be sent to Bulgaria this fall as part of American plans to help reassure NATO allies worried by Russia's involvement in Ukraine, a top commander said Thursday.

As part of the European Reassurance Initiative, about 155 Marines with the Black Sea Rotational Force will conduct six-month rotational deployments to Novo Selo Training Area, Bulgaria. The rotations will begin by early September and at least three are planned over an 18 month period.

Brig. Gen. Norman Cooling, deputy commander of Marine Corps Europe and Africa, said the Marines will be equipped with four Abrams main battle tanks, six light armored vehicles and three howitzers. He spoke as NATO defense ministers met Thursday in Brussels.

U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter said this week that more American military equipment would be positioned in Estonia, Lithuania, Latvia, Bulgaria, Romania, Poland and Germany as NATO seeks to bolster its forces in Eastern Europe.

"It's certainly our intent to convince the Russians and [President Vladimir] Putin to refrain from aggression and return to the community of peaceful nations," Cooling said.

The ultimate goal in introducing the combined arms company, like other measures sought by NATO and U.S. European Command, is to assure U.S. allies and protect their territorial integrity, said Capt. Richard Ulsh, a spokesman for Marine Corps Europe and Africa.

"With these tanks and artillery we will enhance the collective capability between the Marine Corps, our allies, and our international partners," Ulsh said. "... This further emphasizes the stance we've maintained all along and that is that we will face security crises together, but now we can do it with tanks and artillery."

Cooling said in addition to being a deterrent, the Marine unit would train with Bulgarian, Romanian and other allied forces over the next 18 months to improve the ability for U.S. forces to operate with forces using different equipment and methods. Marines will move through in six-month rotations.

"Ideally this culminates with integrated exercises with units from more and more allied nations that are able to call for fire from one another's artillery, our tanks maneuver in support of their infantry units, and vice versa," he said.

The U.S. already regularly conducts maneuvers with allied countries. In Romania on Thursday, U.S Navy Adm. Mark E. Ferguson III, a top NATO commander, said recent exercises have shown that the alliance is capable of training and operating across northern and Eastern Europe.

He also noted that NATO successfully relocated the Allied Joint Force Command temporarily from Italy to Romania for exercises this month involving 1,000 troops from 21 nations, as the alliance continues to hone its ability to react to Russia's moves in Ukraine or other security challenges.

Rozas Airfield in Northern Spain May Become NATO Drone Base

Source : http://sputniknews.com

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Spain joined NATO in 1982. Today Spain maintains two military bases with a permanent US presence – an air base in Seville and a combined air and naval base in Cadiz.

"In Rozas they carry out testing of military drones since March 2011 in complete darkness and opacity," Spanish lawmaker Ramon Vazquez Diaz said.

Diaz believes that these activities and major investments in airfield infrastructure demonstrate that NATO intends to convert the location into a key piece of its network in Western Europe.

"The heads of the [Spain's] Air Force… have admitted that Rozas airfield is ideal to establish a NATO drones base," the lawmaker added.

Diaz accused local authorities and the Spanish government of hiding plans from the public and not allowing lawmakers to inspect the facility.

Earlier in June, US and Spanish governments signed a controversial amendment to the Bilateral Agreement on Defense Cooperation that allows a permanent US Marine Corps presence at Spain’s Moron Air Base.

NATO to boost special defense forces to 40,000 - Stoltenberg

Source : http://rt.com

 

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg has announced that the Spearhead Force deployed in Eastern Europe will be extended to 40,000 troops.

"All together we expect this force to be 40,000 strong,"Stoltenberg said.

The announcement was made in Brussels ahead of a meeting of NATO defense ministers.The current strength of the Spearhead Force is 13,000 troops.Secretary General Stoltenberg said the threefold increase in troops was “substantial.”

"This will enable us to deploy our forces as quickly as we need when crises arise, while maintaining full political control," Stoltenberg said.

NATO member states welcomed the deployment of American military hardware in Europe. Stoltenberg said it doesn’t violate the Alliance’s international obligations. According to the NATO head, the Alliance won’t get into an arms race with Russia, but it has obligations to protect its allies.

NATO aims for a dialogue with Moscow, yet strengthening the Alliance’s defense capabilities doesn’t contradict this goal, said Stoltenberg. He stressed that strong defense is one of the conditions for a dialogue with Russia.

Although military cooperation between the Alliance and Moscow is on hold, political dialogue on various levels is ongoing. Direct communications between the militaries are also active to avoid incorrect interpretations of military activities.

During the media conference on Wednesday, British Defence Secretary Michael Fallon said that Russia and NATO were “saber-rattling” to provoke and intimidate one another, adding that “ it is important also that the alliance ... continues to commit to the collective will to defend all its members.”

On Tuesday, US Defense Secretary Ash Carter announced that Washington plans to station its military hardware, including tanks and armored vehicles, in a number of European countries.

Heavy armaments are going to be deployed to Europe for the purpose of conducting military drills, said Stoltenberg, answering a question about the move being possibly considered a provocation against Russia.

Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, and Romania will be hosting up to 250 vehicles, including Abrams tanks, Bradley armored vehicles and self-propelled howitzers.

NATO is preparing to adopt an assistance package for Moldova to help it modernized its forces, Stoltenberg said.

Stoltenberg said he will meet the Ukrainian defense minister on Thursday to “review the challenges” the country faces. “We will also review the support we are providing for a strong and sovereign Ukraine,”said the NATO chief.

 

Russia is not aggressive but defending its interests - Putin

Source : http://m.rbth.co.uk

Russia is not behaving aggressively on the international arena and does not claim superpower status, Russian President Vladimir Putin said.

Speaking at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) on June 19, Putin said he didn't like former French Prime Minister Francois Fillon's remark that Russia is behaving increasingly more aggressively.

"I didn't like what you are saying about an aggressive nature of our behavior. We are not behaving aggressively. We've started defending our interests more and more resolutely and consistently. We calmly kept silent for a long time, I'd say for a decade, and proposed various elements of cooperation. But we were gradually pressed and pressed on and were ultimately pressed against a line we could not cross," Putin said.

"Russia doesn't claim any hegemony or any ephemeral superpower status," Putin said. "We are not imposing our standards and our behavior and development models on anyone. We want equitable relations with all members of the international community, including the U.S., the European Partners, and those in Asia," he said.

"Don't seek to reshape the world but proceed from something that already exists, treat each other with respect and look for common solutions to common problems," he said.

Interview: U.S.-NATO Military Confrontation With Russia Risks Nuclear War

Source : http://www.presstv.ir

US, Russia edging toward nuclear catastrophe: Anti-war activist
“The threat posed by the post-Cold War revival and the expansion of the NATO cannot be overestimated,” said Rick Rozoff.

The United States and its NATO allies are edging toward a high-risk military standoff with Russia over the crisis in Ukraine, a situation that may lead to the worst catastrophe in history, an anti-war activist in Chicago says.

“The threat posed by the post-Cold War revival and the expansion of the NATO cannot be overestimated,” said Rick Rozoff, a member of Stop NATO International.

“It has the potential quite literally to lead our planet and its people towards the worst catastrophe in history, which would be a nuclear war,” Rozoff told Press TV on Friday.

Over 2,000 troops are taking part in the Noble Jump 2 war games, the first exercise of NATO’s new rapid response force intended to warn Russia of its readiness and reassure east European NATO members who fear Moscow’s actions in Ukraine.

Rozoff made the comments after he was asked about Thursday’s war games in Poland involving 2,100 soldiers from nine NATO states.

US, Belgian, Czech, Dutch, German, Hungarian, Lithuanian, Norwegian and Polish troops have been preparing since last week for this full-scale exercise.

The military alliance has also mounted a series of military drills on its eastern borders to counter Russia’s increased military presence in the Baltic Sea.

This comes as the Pentagon is considering deploying heavy weaponry, tanks and other vehicles for as many as 5,000 American troops in eastern European countries bordering Russia, US officials said last week.

“The US has managed through the mechanism of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) to establish permanent military installations, in many cases taking over air bases to be used for strategic strikes against Russia,” Rozoff said.

Ties between Washington and Moscow have reached an all-time low over the crisis in Ukraine, which began after pro-Western forces ousted the country’s president, Viktor Yanukovych, in February 2014.

The US accuses Russia of destabilizing Ukraine by supporting pro-Russia forces in the eastern regions. The Kremlin, however, denies the allegations.

Siege Of Kaliningrad: US To Move Military Equipment Into Lithuania

Source : https://rickrozoff.wordpress.com

VILNIUS: Lithuanian government ratified on Wednesday a bilateral agreement with the United States on its military presence in Lithuanian territory and investments into Lithuanian defense infrastructure.

According to the announcement from Lithuanian Defense Ministry, the agreement between the governments of Lithuania and the U.S. stipulates prepositioning and stationing of the U.S. military equipment, weaponry and vehicles in Lithuania and the U.S. funded development of Lithuanian Army’s infrastructure.

A two year agreement which can be extended is due to come into force as soon as both sides exchange diplomatic notes.

Juozas Olekas, Lithuanian Defense Minister, said the agreement fortifies one of the country’s key security interests to have defense support from the strategic partner in Lithuania.

“Furthermore, U.S. funding will step up the development projects of national training areas aimed at enhancing the conditions for combined training and readiness for defense,” a Defense Ministry statement quoted Olekas as saying.

The funding under the U.S. European Reassurance Initiative will be used to develop Airbase in Siauliai, where allied air forces conduct air policing missions in air space over the three Baltic States of Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia. The funding will be allocated to develop training areas in Rukla and Pabrade, as well as other military infrastructure objects in Lithuania, said the Ministry.

Under the agreement, roughly 15 million U.S. dollars will be allocated to these projects this year. The European Reassurance Initiative announced by the U.S. President amounts to 1 billion U.S. dollars.

The agreement on closer military cooperation between Lithuanian and the U.S. follows a high profile visit in Lithuania by the General Phillip Breedlove, the Commander U.S. European Command and NATO Supreme Allied Commander Europe, a day before.

Breedlove met with top Lithuanian Defense officials to discuss security issues in the Eastern Europe and assess how defense commitments from NATO allies are being practically implemented in Lithuania. Last year NATO allies agreed to strengthen collective defense, particularly in the Eastern Europe.

Rotating forces of the United States were deployed in Lithuania in spring 2014 and have been attending joint military exercises in the Baltic States since then.

Russian Ambassador Warns of 'Risks' Should Sweden Join NATO

Source : http://www.atlanticcouncil.org

On Thursday, Russia's ambassador to Sweden, Viktor Tatarintsev, hit out in an interview with the Dagens Nyheter daily at what he called an "aggressive propaganda campaign" by Swedish media. 

"Russia is often described as an attacker who only thinks of conducting wars and threatening others. But I can guarantee that Sweden, which is an alliance-free nation, is not part of any military plans by Russian authorities. Sweden is not a target for our armed troops," he said.

However, he underlined that if Sweden were to abandon its alliance neutrality and join the Western military organization [NATO], Russia would adopt "counter measures".

"I don't think it will become relevant in the near future, even though there has been a certain swing in public opinion. But if it happens there will be counter measures.Putin pointed out that there will beconsequences, that Russia will have to resort to a response of the military kind and re-orientate our troops and missiles. The country that joins Nato needs to be aware of the risks it is exposing itself to," he told DN.

NATO conducting biggest beef up of defenses since Cold War – alliance chief

Source : http://rt.com

NATO is implementing “the biggest reinforcement” of defense since Cold War times, said NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg, adding that the alliance is facing challenges from “the behavior of a more assertive” Russia.

“The NATO is facing a new security environment both caused by violence, turmoil, instability in the south, ISIL in Iraq, Syria, North Africa, but also caused by the behavior of a more assertive Russia, which has used force to change borders to annex Crimea and to destabilize eastern Ukraine,” Stoltenberg said.

He asserted that the alliance “has to respond” and they “are responding,” while meeting with the alliance’s soldiers in Poland on Thursday.

“We are doing so by implementing the biggest reinforcement of the collective defense since the end of the Cold War.”

Despite the comment, Stoltenberg stated that NATO “does not seek confrontation”with Moscow.“We continue to strive for a more cooperative and constructive relationship with Russia. And we don't seek a new arms race.”

On Tuesday Russian President Vladimir Putin said that if NATO threatens Russian territory, Moscow will respond to the threat accordingly.

“If someone threatens our territories, it means that we will have to aim our armed forces accordingly at the territories from where the threat is coming. How else could it be? It is NATO that is approaching our borders; it’s not like we are moving anywhere,” Putin said.

On Sunday it was reported that Poland and Lithuania were in talks with Washington about permanently stationing warehouses for US army equipment on their territories. Heavy weapons could be stored in the Baltic States, Romania, Bulgaria and Hungary.

At least 49 vessels from 17 countries, involving 5,600 troops overall, are now taking part in the US-led BALTOPS exercises in the Baltic Sea. The training operation kicked off from the Polish port of Gdynia on June 5 and then moved out into the Baltic Sea. It will run until June 20.

This year’s exercise involves the participation of 61 aircraft, a submarine and an amphibious landing force of 700 troops.

NATO member states Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Estonia, France, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Turkey, the UK and the US have dispatched their naval forces to take part in the drill.

The group has been joined by three partners outside the alliance – Finland and Sweden, which both have access to the Baltic Sea, as well as Georgia.

BALTOPS has been held annually since 1971. This year, NATO’s website stresses that the current, 43rd edition of the drill “is not held in response to any specific threat.”

NATO Trident Joust Military Exercises Begin in Romania

Via : http://www.strategic-culture.org

Sputnik – NATO Trident Joust 2015 exercises, comprising twenty five member nations and over 1,000 personnel, began Thursday in Romania, according to a statement issued by NATO Allied Command Operations.

During the drills, Allied Joint Force Command (JFC) Naples will deploy to Romania.

"The exercise is designed to test the abilities of Joint Force Command (JFC) Naples to lead a collective defense operation for the Alliance," Adm. Mark Ferguson, the commander of JFC Naples, said as quoted in the statement.

The Trident Joust exercise, running until June 28, is part of the NATO Allied Shield drills, which include Noble Jump, BALTOPS and Saber Strike, taking place in various locations within the bloc in June, comprising about 14,000 soldiers.

According to the NATO website, the exercises are response measures to challenges on its eastern periphery.

Russia has repeatedly expressed concern over the buildup of NATO forces in Eastern Europe, saying that it is an aggressive step that could increase tensions and destabilize the region.

France Joins NATO's Integrated Air Defense System

Source : http://www.atlanticcouncil.org

After thorough preparation and planning, jointly and effectively coordinated between the French and NATO Headquarters, France agreed to declare its assets eligible for NATO Air Policing duties over the French airspace and neighboring countries as of 01 June 2015. After a short period of time, necessary to update and implement the required operational and tactical baseline documentation, French airspace has been included in the NATO Integrated Air and Missile Defence System (NATINAMDS) as of 10 June, essential to NATO's air and missile defencue policy and the cornerstone to the Alliance's collective defence.

NATO assumes responsibility for monitoring airspace over the SACEUR's area of responsibility. For the airspace over France, this responsibility is sharedbetween Allied Air Command's two Combined Air Operations Centres (CAOCs). The first, CAOC Uedem, located in Germany monitors all Northern NATO airspace including the north of France; and, likewise, CAOC Torrejon, located in Spain, monitors Southern NATO airspace including the south of France. This split is unique to NATO allies and demonstrates the special relationships and interoperability shared across the Alliance. This integration across Allied Air Command and the coordination between France and the CAOCs reflects emerging air command control capabilities for the Alliance's collective defence mission.

"France is now fully integrated into the NATINAMDS", says Lieutenant-GeneralDominique de Longvilliers, Deputy Commander of Allied Air Command. "As with every other Ally, French sovereignty is maintained through air policing. It is an important step forward for the Alliance, which now has the responsibility to monitor and perform peacetime Air Policing mission over a seamless airspace from Spain to Norway and from Western Atlantic coast to Eastern border of Turkey. We will continue to fine-tune our command and control procedures during the upcoming months to ensure NATO's high standard of interoperability as well as the Alliance's security. However, we already know we are on the right track. Indeed, this morning at 11h09 a French Mirage 2000 was requested by CAOC Uedem to takeoff against a military target for exercise. At 11h19, the M 2000 was airborne and at 11h35 the target was successfully intercepted."

NATO should expand presence on its eastern borders - Polish defense minister

Source : http://tass.ru/en

 
TASS - Polish Defense Minister Tomasz Siemoniak has urged NATO to consistently increase presence on its eastern fringe irrespective of Russia’s stance.

"Those who are responsible for the security of their countries should do their job irrespective of someone’s words or threats," the minister said adding that remarks of intention to target their systems at someone do not contribute to building reciprocal trust.

"I believe that these remarks are meant for internal public opinion but even though they are not creating good atmosphere," the Polish Press Agency quoted the defense minister as saying.

According to Siemoniak, it’s useless to enter into any discussions with Russia. "One day the messages are calm, the next day they are strong. I believe that a NATO adopted line of calm and consistent expansion of its presence and military capabilities in the east is more than rational," the Polish defense minister stressed.

In his speech at the opening of the Army 2015 International Military Technological Forum, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that more than 40 new inter-continental ballistic missiles would be added to Russia’s nuclear arsenal this year. "They will be capable of penetrating any, even the most technologically advanced, anti-missile defense systems," the Russian president said.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told journalists that Russia was not taking any actions, which could arouse Western security concerns. He explained that all steps which Russia had taken were retaliatory measures.

"The Russian president is giving fairly good arguments to set forth Russia’s stance on strategic security. The deterring effect of nuclear weapons can hardly be denied," Peskov said. Apart from his speech at the Army 2015 forum on Tuesday, President Putin gave a joint news conference with Finnish President Sauli Niinisto where he clearly explained that it was not Russia that was approaching anybody’s borders but NATO’s military infrastructure that was expanding closer to Russia’s borders.

Russia to bolster its forces in the west in response to Pentagon

Source: Pravda.Ru

Pentagon keeps provocating the Russian Federation as providing weaponry to its neighbouring countries.

The US has recently declared its aim to store arms in Estonia and Latvia, as well as other Eastern states.

Among the heavy weaponry to be supplied are tanks, Humvees, and Bradley Fighting Vehicles.

Such a move would be unprecedented, and is still subject to approval from Washington. A 1997 agreement with Russia currently prohibits the US from positioning these weapons and vehicles in Eastern Europe.

Russian General Yury Yakubov has since responded to the move "If US heavy hardware including tanks, artillery systems, or other fighting vehicles does appear in some Eastern European and Baltic countries, this would mark the Pentagon and NATO's most aggressive step since the Cold War time of the past century," and further added that "Russia won't have anything else to do but bolster its forces and resources on the Western strategic theater of operations."

Of course, The United States doesn't have a monopoly on hot-headed military brass, that are currently refueling Cold War tensions. Yakubov himself publicly identified the US as the most significant threat to Russia last year, and suggested that they prepare themselves to launch a preemptive nuclear strike against the US and NATO in the near future.

Russia: If US would stationing heavy weapons in Eastern Europe, we will be forced to appropriate countermeasures

Source : http://www.rtdeutsch.com

The supreme General of the Russian Armed Forces Yuri Jabukow has announced that, if the United States would, as announced stationing heavy weapons in Eastern Europe, Russia react appropriately and its military presence will continue to expand on the western border as well. There would be no binding obligations which would prohibit Russia to strengthen its own armed forces in the western part of the country.

Should the US heavy weapons, whether tanks, artillery systems or other military hardware embarrassed the Baltic states or Eastern Europe, this would be "the most aggressive step the Pentagon and NATO since the end of the Cold War before a quarter of a century," said Jabukow compared to Interfax.

The Russian Foreign Ministry warned the US and its European allies against "dangerous consequences" that would have an increase in the presence near the Russian border. It was hoped that the situation in Europe could be preserved in the direction of a new military confrontation before another slide, it said in a statement.

The stationing of heavy weapons along the eastern borders of NATO would violate crucial content of the basic treaty between Russia and NATO in 1997. There, the Western alliance had undertaken not to station substantial combat units permanently in Eastern European member states.

"In fact, many believe both in Washington and in European capitals that the so-called 'Russian threat' is nothing but a myth", it said in the statement. "It is common, such as the United States practiced this here to use propaganda to divert attention from their own responsibility for the unconstitutional coup in Ukraine and the misdeeds of the regime in Kiev, which is unwilling to end the fratricide in the Donbass. "

It is to be feared that the US military strategy in the "eastern" NATO completely lose touch with reality and the political interests of the European people, it is said in the statement of Defence on.

The comments came in response to an article in the New York Times on Saturday, which states:

"In an important step to prevent a possible Russian aggression in Europe, the Pentagon is determined to battle tanks, infantry fighting vehicles and other heavy weapons to station 5 for # 000 American soldiers in some of the Baltic and Eastern European countries."

January Oberg, director of the Transnational Association for Peace and Future Research, explained that those who would be responsible for such decisions, have simply no idea:

"I think what we see here, is conflict-illiteracy. He said that the people who decide such things - especially in the US, but also at NATO headquarters and in the foreign and defense ministries in Europe - no idea of ​​negotiation processes, conflict resolution, confidence-building and all other things, we have means of which had worked during the first Cold War. "