WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Europe has demilitarized too much since the end of the Cold War and its underfunded defense budgets are undermining shared security goals, U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates said on Tuesday.
Gates, addressing a NATO seminar in Washington, said too few helicopters and cargo aircraft for the NATO mission in Afghanistan were "directly impacting operations." NATO also needed more aerial refueling tankers and surveillance aircraft...
...The unwillingness of European countries to fund defense was part of a trend in which large parts of the public and the political class there "are averse to military force and the risks that go with it," Gates said...
One wonder why on earth the Europeans would feel that way.
..."Since the end of the Cold War, national defense budgets have fallen consistently -- even with unprecedented operations outside NATO's territory over the past five years," Gates said.
He said only five of 28 NATO allies met a defense spending target of 2 percent of gross domestic product...
A target of 2% of the gross domestic product to make weapons "Merika can use that the chocolate makers refuse to meet.
It must be our freedom they don't like.
C'mon, the Pentagon and the Company work hard to create a global War on Terra. They even let you get involved in some civilian drone bombing action. The least you could do is share the obsession with blood and Empire.
No comments:
Post a Comment