Has US Crippled NATO?
Tue, 2008-08-26 15:19
#1
Has US Crippled NATO?
Tue, 2008-08-26 15:19
#2
quote:
With the end of the Cold War, many analysts and policy makers imagined that the developed world might actually move away from its irrational attachment to militarization and war. The most optimistic envisioned a huge, international peace dividend, shifting untold billions previously spent on conventional and nuclear weapons to tackling poverty and inequality around the world.Alas, the U.S. had no intention of dismantling NATO. For the U.S., it was simple: NATO provided the sheen of legitimacy for the extension of U.S. power well beyond its original mandate of Europe.
But ironically the Bush administration -- the most imperial of U.S. governments in generations -- may well go down in history as the one that crippled NATO and effectively left the U.S. isolated.
If there is a silver lining to the grotesque destruction of human life in Iraq and Afghanistan and the inexplicably stupid adventure in Georgia, it is the possibility that the U.S. will lose its already reluctant EU partners in making the world safe for U.S. oil companies.
[url=http://thetyee.ca/Views/2008/08/26/NATO/]Murray Dobbin at the Tyee[/url]
There have been hints about this for quite a while. Now, this idiotic escapade in Georgia may bring it out in the open. Dobbin reports on an interesting speculation.
Tue, 2008-08-26 16:01
#3
N.Beltov
One Russian wag describes NATO as the club that the USA uses to beat up Europe with. And, goes the analysis, the Europeans are getting tired of this clubbing and arm-twisting and of seeing their nationals (much more so than Canada) come home in body bags from their NATO service in Afghanistan. The French have had a rude awakening recently in this regard with 10 dead French soldiers all at once.
The Dobbin piece is a good summary and is an antidote to the thinking that "there is no alternative" to Canada lashing itself to the American whale as the latter plunges into the deeps, possibly forever ...