Gates questions validity of NATO

[Capt Worley PE]

BRUSSELS (AP) - America's military alliance with Europe - the cornerstone of U.S. security policy for six decades - faces a "dim, if not dismal" future, U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Friday in a blunt valedictory address.
In his final policy speech as Pentagon chief, Gates questioned the viability of NATO, saying its members' penny-pinching and lack of political will could hasten the end of U.S. support. The North Atlantic Treaty Organization was formed in 1949 as a U.S.-led bulwark against Soviet aggression, but in the post-Cold War era it has struggled to find a purpose.

"Future U.S. political leaders - those for whom the Cold War was not the formative experience that it was for me - may not consider the return on America's investment in NATO worth the cost," he told a European think tank on the final day of an 11-day overseas journey.

More: http://apnews.myway.com/article/20110610/D9NOU8EG1.html

Personally, I think we should get out of the UN immediately, but NATO has its place. Gates is right, though about the way NATO is being run, so I could see eventually leaving NATO.

 

[Exengineer]

Robert Gates is a relic from the past. Sure he wants all the other NATO members to spend billions more on "defense" (defense against what?) so they too can run up devastating deficits and destroy their currency, the euro. Haven't enough nations in Europe gone bankrupt recently? By the way, the USSR passed on 20 years ago so the great nuclear threat is no longer there. Russia sure can't be considered a military threat---their soldiers are too drunk on vodka most of the time. The arms industries must be kept profitable however so the Establishment in Washington will create new enemies and fabricate whatever evidence they need to convince a gullible public that we aren't safe unless we spend trillions more on military adventures and hardware. Next thing you know they will have you believing the Somali pirates will be boarding vessels in Tampa Bay unless they're stopped in the Indian Ocean.

 

[Capt Worley PE]

The point I took from it was that NATO's time has passed, and Europe should defend itself, instead of having the US do it. After reflection, I can see his point. The cold war is over, and has been for almost two decades. I don't know how much we want to pull out of Europe, but I think it should be put on the table, due to the fiscal crisis.

 

[Ble_PE]

I for one am extremely tired of being the world's policeman. I think it would do our economy good to pull back our military to where it's actually providing national defense. If another country wants military help or support from us, they can pay for it. We are not in the position financially to be providing a security blanket for Europe, or any other part of the world for that matter. Like capt said, it's high time for Europe to provide their own defense.

 

[Capt Worley PE]

Like capt said, it's high time for Europe to provide their own defense.

I was watching the news last night and it said while the US pays about 5.4% of the GDP for the military, European countries were paying 1.5-1.9% of their GDPs, which are all lower than the US.