Monthly Archives: March 2015

Fox News: Russia and ISIS are the biggest threats to NATO countries
Fox News: Russian and ISIS threats are both new incarnations of ancient concept - hybrid warfare RI doesn #39;t own copyrights for this video The original video is a courtesy of Fox News https://www.yo...

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Fox News: Russia and ISIS are the biggest threats to NATO countries - Video

STOCKHOLM NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg says it was German Chancellor Angela Merkel who convinced him to accept the alliance's top job.

In a prerecorded talk show to be aired Friday by Swedish broadcaster SVT, Stoltenberg says Merkel "was the first to talk to me (about it). And I must admit that I have a problem saying no when asked by such nice ladies."

A former Norwegian prime minister, Stoltenberg replaced Anders Fogh Rasmussen as NATO secretary-general last year.

Stoltenberg told the "Skavlan" talk show that cooperating with Russia is difficult when it won't respect its neighbors' borders a reference to Moscow's intervention in Ukraine. But he said NATO members like the Baltic countries don't face the same threat because the alliance would protect them, and "all Russian leaders understand that."

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Stoltenberg says German chancellor Merkel asked him to become NATO chief

Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a news conference following a meeting with Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi in the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, Thursday, March 5, 2015. Italy's prime minister visited Moscow on Thursday in a bid to repair ties that have been hurt by Russia-West tensions over Ukraine. (AP Photo/Sergei Karpukhin, Pool)(The Associated Press)

Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi , left, speaks as Russian President Vladimir Putin, listens, during their news conference after their talks in the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, Thursday, March 5, 2015. Italy's prime minister visited Moscow on Thursday in a bid to repair ties that have been hurt by Russia-West tensions over Ukraine. (AP Photo/Sergei Karpukhin, Pool)(The Associated Press)

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, left, walks with Finnish Foreign Minister Erkki Tuomioja before their meeting in Helsinki, Finland, Thursday, March 5, 2015. (AP Photo/Lehtikuva, Markku Ulander) FINLAND OUT, NO THIRD PARTY SALES(The Associated Press)

RIGA, Latvia NATO and Russia are exchanging heated language reminiscent of Cold War days with accusations of sinister geopolitical plotting and human rights abuses flying across an increasingly deep divide.

NATO's top U.S. civilian official said Thursday says that "an angry, revisionist Russia" was stopping at little to re-establish its clout in Europe, including redrawing "borders by force to achieve its goals."

NATO Deputy Secretary-General Alexander Vershbow said President Vladimir Putin's "aim seems to be to turn Ukraine into a failed state and to suppress and discredit alternative voices in Russia, so as to prevent a Russian 'Maidan,'" referring to the Ukraine uprising which ousted Moscow-ally Viktor Yanukovych last year.

In Moscow, Russia's Deputy Defense Minister Anatoly Antonov blasted the West for trying to create "new divisive lines in Europe."

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NATO lashes out at 'revisionist' Russia, Moscow blasts West for creating new 'divisive lines'

LONDON, Feb. 20 (UPI) -- A senior NATO military officer warned that Russia could invade the Baltic States with tactics practiced in Ukraine.

In a London speech to the Royal United Services Institute, British Gen. Sir Adrian Bradshaw, Deputy Supreme Commander of NATO forces, cited a "danger that Russia might believe that the large-scale conventional forces which she has shown she can generate on very short notice, as we saw in the snap exercise that preceded the takeover of Crimea, could in the future be used not only for intimidation and coercion but potentially to seize NATO territory."

He referred to the Baltic states, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, NATO-member countries which border Russia and were part of the Soviet Union.

Bradshaw's comments came the same day Valdis Dombrovskis, European Commission Vice president and former Latvia Prime Minister, called for a stronger NATO presence in the Baltic countries.

"Russia's aggression against Ukraine is very worrying for Baltic states. It shows that Russia is looking to redraw Europe's 21st century borders by force, and it must be noted that Ukraine is not the first country to face Russia's aggression," Dombrovskis said in London.

The unusually strong warnings came a day after British defense minister Michael Fallon called Russian President Vladimir Putin "a real and present danger" to NATO and to the Baltic states, and two days after British fighter jets intercepted Russian bombers flying near British airspace.

Britain's House of Lords committee overseeing European Union relations issued a report Friday accusing the EU and the British government of a "catastrophic misreading" of Russia's intentions for Ukraine, saying Britain was not "active or visible enough" to dissuade the Kremlin from its involvement in Ukraine.

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Officials warn of Russian danger to EU, NATO

NAPLES, Italy International warships assigned to a U.S.-led NATO maritime group entered the Black Sea on Wednesday to train with alliance members in the region.

The arrival of the Standing NATO Maritime Group 2 continues a string of visits to the region by the U.S. and its allies over the past year a response to Russias annexation of Crimea last year and its support of separatists in eastern Ukraine. The American destroyer USS Cole left the Black Sea in late February.

Six ships make up the current group,one of two immediate-reaction forces under the alliances maritime arm. The group is commanded by U.S. Navy Rear Adm. Brad Williamson, who is embarked with his staff on the guided-missile cruiser USS Vicksburg.

The ships will train with NATO member counterparts from Bulgaria, Romania and Turkey, NATO said in a news release. Exercises will focus on anti-submarine and anti-air-warfare and defending small boat attacks.

The visit is the second by a NATO maritime group to the Black Sea in the past year and follows an exercise in September with American and Ukrainian navies. For that visit, three members of the group entered the Black Sea.

The maritime groups groups often exercise with counterparts across the alliance, and they rotate participation in NATOs anti-piracy operation, Ocean Shield.

During its latest tour, the maritime group 2 has made stops in Italy and Croatia and participated in NATOs post-9/11 counterterrorism mission, Operation Active Endeavor. The group also exercised with the French aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle, which was on its way to Middle Eastern waters for participation in airstrikes against the Islamic State group.

The U.S. and NATO have sought to reassure allies in the Black Sea region after Russias annexation of Crimea, where Russia maintains a critical naval base in Sevastopol. The U.S., in particular, has increased its visits to the Black Sea, which provides Russias only access to the Mediterranean Sea and is home to Russias Black Sea fleet.

U.S. warships, which previously made only sporadic visits, now enter the region almost monthly. Russia has responded to the visits with more aggressive flight operations.

The other ships in the NATO maritime group are the Canadian frigate HMCS Fredericton, the Turkish frigate TCG Turgutreis, the German tanker FGS Spessart, the Italian frigate ITS Aliseo, and the Romanian firgate ROS Regina Maria.

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NATO maritime group enters Black Sea as Ukraine crisis continues