NATO proposed a new era of cooperation with Russia on Friday, calling for joint work with Moscow and Washington on missile defense after the US scrapped a planned anti-missile system.
Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin described as “correct and brave” US President Barack Obama’s decision to drop the missile shield intended for Europe by predecessor George W. Bush. Russia’s NATO envoy welcomed the NATO cooperation proposals.
Some military experts saw the moves as a sign of weakness by Obama that Moscow hardliners would want to exploit. Putin called in a speech on Friday for Obama to follow up with concessions on trade and technology transfer.
Others described abandonment of the system as a bold gesture that could improve frosty relations between the West and Russia but also said many obstacles remained to better ties between the former Cold War foes.
“I do believe that it is possible for NATO and Russia to make a new beginning and to enjoy a far more productive relationship in the future,” NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said in his first big policy speech since taking office last month.
“We should explore the potential for linking the U.S., NATO and Russian missile defence systems at an appropriate time,” he said.
US Defense Secretary Robert Gates said the Armavir radar in southern Russia “actually would fill a gap in coverage.”
“And we would welcome the Russians networking with us in this. We think that we could make that happen,” Gates told reporters in Washington.
Rasmussen called for more cooperation on ending the conflict in Afghanistan, fighting piracy at sea and ensuring Iran does not develop nuclear arms. He also proposed a joint review of global security threats.
He gave few details of how his proposals would work but they were welcomed by Dmitry Rogozin, Russia’s NATO envoy and one of Moscow’s loudest critics of the planned US missile shield.
“It was very positive, very constructive and we have to analyze together all the sec-gen’s proposals for the new beginning of NATO-Russia cooperation,” Rogozin said.
He indicated Russia would not go ahead with plans to deploy medium-range missiles in Kaliningrad, a Russian enclave that borders NATO members Poland and Lithuania, if the US abandoned its plans to place ground-based interceptors in Poland and use a radar site in the Czech Republic.
NATO’s ties with Russia have improved since the Cold War ended but deteriorated again following the defense alliance’s eastward expansion to take in former Communist-ruled countries in eastern Europe and Moscow’s war in Georgia last year.
Contentious issues include NATO’s offer of eventual membership for Georgia and fellow former Soviet republic Ukraine, which was opposed at a NATO summit last year by France and Germany, and is deeply resented by Russia.
NATO is troubled by Russia’s recognition of the rebellious South Ossetia and Abkhazia regions in Georgia as independent states, and there is lingering mutual mistrust.
“If I was only born yesterday, I would be delighted, but I was not born yesterday,” Rogozin said, adding that there had been several false starts in efforts to improve relations.
Washington had proposed the shield because of concerns Iran was trying to develop nuclear warheads — something Iran denies — and could mount them on long-range missiles. But Russia saw it as a threat to its own missile defenses and overall security.
Under a new plan, Washington would initially deploy ships with interceptors and in a second phase would field land-based defense systems.
US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton urged Iran to use the talks to ease fears over its nuclear program or risk greater isolation.
“There will be accompanying costs for Iran’s continued defiance; more isolation and economic pressure, less possibility of progress for the people of Iran,” Clinton said.
Kehinde Sanni spends his days smoothing out dents and repainting scratched bumpers in a modest autobody shop in Lagos. He has never left Nigeria, yet he speaks glowingly of Burkina Faso military leader Ibrahim Traore. “Nigeria needs someone like Ibrahim Traore of Burkina Faso. He is doing well for his country,” Sanni said. His admiration is shaped by a steady stream of viral videos, memes and social media posts — many misleading or outright false — portraying Traore as a fearless reformer who defied Western powers and reclaimed his country’s dignity. The Burkinabe strongman swept into power following a coup in September 2022
‘FRAGMENTING’: British politics have for a long time been dominated by the Labor Party and the Tories, but polls suggest that Reform now poses a significant challenge Hard-right upstarts Reform UK snatched a parliamentary seat from British Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s Labor Party yesterday in local elections that dealt a blow to the UK’s two establishment parties. Reform, led by anti-immigrant firebrand Nigel Farage, won the by-election in Runcorn and Helsby in northwest England by just six votes, as it picked up gains in other localities, including one mayoralty. The group’s strong showing continues momentum it built up at last year’s general election and appears to confirm a trend that the UK is entering an era of multi-party politics. “For the movement, for the party it’s a very, very big
ENTERTAINMENT: Rio officials have a history of organizing massive concerts on Copacabana Beach, with Madonna’s show drawing about 1.6 million fans last year Lady Gaga on Saturday night gave a free concert in front of 2 million fans who poured onto Copacabana Beach in Rio de Janeiro for the biggest show of her career. “Tonight, we’re making history... Thank you for making history with me,” Lady Gaga told a screaming crowd. The Mother Monster, as she is known, started the show at about 10:10pm local time with her 2011 song Bloody Mary. Cries of joy rose from the tightly packed fans who sang and danced shoulder-to-shoulder on the vast stretch of sand. Concert organizers said 2.1 million people attended the show. Lady Gaga
SUPPORT: The Australian prime minister promised to back Kyiv against Russia’s invasion, saying: ‘That’s my government’s position. It was yesterday. It still is’ Left-leaning Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese yesterday basked in his landslide election win, promising a “disciplined, orderly” government to confront cost-of-living pain and tariff turmoil. People clapped as the 62-year-old and his fiancee, Jodie Haydon, who visited his old inner Sydney haunt, Cafe Italia, surrounded by a crowd of jostling photographers and journalists. Albanese’s Labor Party is on course to win at least 83 seats in the 150-member parliament, partial results showed. Opposition leader Peter Dutton’s conservative Liberal-National coalition had just 38 seats, and other parties 12. Another 17 seats were still in doubt. “We will be a disciplined, orderly
RSS