Wednesday, February 27, 2008
The Missing Debate
Jan Hamacek, who heads the Czech Parliament's Committee on Foreign Relations, was quoted in today's Washington Times about his concerns about the proposed missile defense system that would be deployed in Central Europe:
"What's missing here is a substantial debate on the alliance level to what extent the threats we are talking about are real, and to what extent a global, layered, missile defense system is the answer to the threats that we are facing."
What a concept! A debate! (Perhaps Saturday Night Live should do a skit on the travails of the NATO alliance).
The NATO defense ministers' summit didn't resolve the problems facing the mission in Afghanistan--and Canada's threat to pull out of ISAF remains on the table. Deputy prime minister Medvedev, soon to become Russia's president-elect, signed deals in Hungary that effectively pull the plug on the alternate NABUCCO pipeline. Then there's Kosovo, and Macedonia (FYROM) ... But no worries, things are copacetic.
"What's missing here is a substantial debate on the alliance level to what extent the threats we are talking about are real, and to what extent a global, layered, missile defense system is the answer to the threats that we are facing."
What a concept! A debate! (Perhaps Saturday Night Live should do a skit on the travails of the NATO alliance).
The NATO defense ministers' summit didn't resolve the problems facing the mission in Afghanistan--and Canada's threat to pull out of ISAF remains on the table. Deputy prime minister Medvedev, soon to become Russia's president-elect, signed deals in Hungary that effectively pull the plug on the alternate NABUCCO pipeline. Then there's Kosovo, and Macedonia (FYROM) ... But no worries, things are copacetic.
