Is NATO’s reputation slipping?

Is NATO’s reputation slipping?
By William H. McMichael - Staff writer
Posted : Monday Feb 25, 2008 6:03:07 EST

Defense Secretary Robert Gates says the credibility of NATO is at stake in Afghanistan and that the 48-year-old alliance is in danger of splitting into two camps — those who are willing to fight, and those who are not.

At a Feb. 20 NATO symposium at the National Defense University in Washington, that latter assessment touched a nerve.

“Blaming people — that’s not going to work,” said one speaker.

“The second thing that’s not going to work is consistently emphasizing everything that’s wrong in Afghanistan,” the speaker said. “Ask for capabilities that we do have — so don’t ask for more Chinooks, because we don’t have them. It’s very simple. They don’t exist. So how the hell can we deploy them?

“Come up with reasonable demands without consistently blaming,” the speaker said.


Rest of article at: http://www.armytimes.com/news/2008/02/military_240208_nato/



uhc comment: Did Brig. Gen. Joseph Votel get this memo?