NATO at 70 – USA Gov Policy

The NATO alliance has reached a major milestone—its 70^th anniversary. The Washington Treaty, which established the alliance, was signed April 4, 1949. It has succeeded in its primary mission of protecting Europe from first the Soviet Union and the aggressiveness of Vladimir Putin’s Russia.

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization not only is the longest-lived alliance in history, but also is the most successful, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg (who will remain in the position until 2022) told a joint session of Congress on April 3.

Describing the current threat, Stoltenberg noted that Russia and China are major competitors. “For the first time, we have combat-ready troops deployed in the east of our alliance,” he said. “We have increased the readiness of our forces, tripled the size of the NATO Response Force, modernized our command structure, bolstered our cyber defenses, and we have stepped up support for our close partners, Georgia and Ukraine, sovereign nations with the sovereign right to choose their own path.”

Speaking at a press conference in March, Stoltenberg said “Russia violates the INF Treaty by deploying new nuclear capable missiles in Europe. And we will also address the aggressive actions of Russia in the Black Sea region.”

He stressed that the fight against terrorism is a long-term effort. He also emphasized the growing threat of cyber attacks.

He summarized NATO’s 2018 accomplishments:

We strengthened our deterrence and defence, including with a new Readiness Initiative.
We agreed a major update of the NATO Command Structure, with two new commands – one for the Atlantic and another to support military mobility in Europe.
We carried out Trident Juncture 2018, NATO’s largest exercise in a generation.
We boosted our cyber defences, including with a Cyberspace Operations Centre.
We stood united in calling out Russia for its use of a nerve agent on British soil and its breach of the INF Treaty.
We stepped up in the fight against terrorism, with a new training mission in Iraq, and more support for Afghanistan.
We deepened our partnerships, from Ukraine and Georgia to Jordan and Tunisia.
We worked more closely than ever before with the European Union, including on maritime security and military mobility.
We invited North Macedonia to become a member of the Alliance, showing that NATO’s door remains open.
We completed the move to this new headquarters, a modern home for a modern Alliance.

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The most controversial issue facing the Alliance remains the level of funding. Some nations with strong economies, Germany being the most notable, have failed to contribute their fair share. In essence, the American taxpayer has been paying for the defense of some nations who could well afford to contribute equally. President Trump has frequently addressed the issue.

Stoltenberg has noted that “… all NATO Allies made a pledge to invest more in defence, to improve burden-sharing in our Alliance. And and I expect all Allies, including Germany of course, to make good on the pledge we made together. We didn’t make this pledge to please the United States, we made it because we live in a more unpredictable and more uncertain world. Allies reduced defence spending after the end of the Cold War when tensions went down, but now tensions are going up again and we have to invest more in defence.

“Germany as all other Allies are now making progress. The good news is that after years of cutting defence spending, Germany and all other Allies are adding billions to their defence budgets. So I welcome the progress we have seen, increased investments from Germany, but of course I expect more from all Allies.

“Then, let me add that burden sharing is not only about spending. Burden sharing is also about contributions to different NATO missions and operations. Germany is a lead nation in Afghanistan, has been there for many years. Germany leads one of our battlegroups in the eastern part of the Alliance, in Lithuania. And Germany is also now responsible for our high-readiness force in NATO, and Germany is also leading the NATO activity in the Aegean Sea.”

The article concludes tomorrow, with a summary of NATO’s 2018 Annual Report

Photo: NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg speaks to a joint session of the U.S. Congress in advance of the alliance’s 70th anniversary, April 3, 2019. NATO photo

Quick Analysis

2024 Vote Faces Integrity Issues

There is mounting evidence that the 2024 vote face serious integrity issues, centered around illegal aliens voting. Examine these media think tank, Attorneys general and other reports: A late September Daily Mail report notes that “Democrats admit thousands of registered Arizona voters haven’t provided proof of citizenship after shock computer ‘glitch.’ Arizona’s Democratic leaders, on a secret call, worried about a shocking discovery that, if made public, would see them accused of rigging the upcoming election and question the results of the last two.” A Heritage Foundation election oversight report found that the Biden-Harris Administration’s voter registration drive has been conducted in a partisan manner. The Research organization Just Facts notes that “Based on the latest available data and an enhanced version of a stress-tested methodology from a scholarly journal, a new study by Just Facts has found that about 10% to 27% of non-citizen adults in the U.S. are now illegally registered to vote. The U.S. Census recorded more than 19 million adult non-citizens living in the U.S. during 2022. Given their voter registration rates, this means that about two million to five million of them are illegally registered to vote. These figures are potentially high enough to overturn the will of the American people in major elections, including congressional seats and the presidency.” A Federalist study stressed that “More than a dozen jurisdictions run by Democrats — including Washington, D.C., and several adjacent Maryland municipalities — allow noncitizens to vote in some local elections. San Francisco not only permits noncitizens to vote but appointed one to serve on its elections commission. Such developments, against a backdrop of millions of illegal migrants streaming into the United States under the Biden-Harris administration, bring new urgency to debates over election integrity. Many Republicans fear that a widespread effort is afoot to give noncitizens the full benefits of citizenship, including the right to vote in all elections, on top of benefits already available to illegal aliens in some places, notably driver’s licenses, food stamps, government health care, and work visas.” In August, as reported earlier in this column, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, in a coalition of twenty-three other attorneys general filed+ an amicus brief in support of an Arizona law requiring proof of citizenship in order to vote, asking the Supreme Court of the United States for an emergency stay of a federal district court’s injunction against the law. “The Biden-Harris Administration has intentionally flooded our country with illegal aliens. Without proper safeguards, foreign nationals can and will illegally influence elections at the local, state, and national level,” said Attorney General Paxton. “The States have a constitutional right and responsibility to ensure that only legal votes from American citizens are counted. I hope the Supreme Court recognizes the urgency of this situation and moves to protect our national elections. Lawmakers in Texas must also make every effort to secure our elections and prevent noncitizens from voting. I urge them in the next legislative session to prioritize election integrity in Texas after millions of illegal aliens entered the state under the Biden-Harris Administration. As we also reported earlier, Democratic party leaders haven’t been shy about their advocacy to rapidly allow illegal aliens to vote. Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, appearing on Bill Maher’s program, advocated quickly turning these unlawful arrivals into citizens. California’s Democratic Party is so intent on allowing illegals to vote that its super-majority in the state legislature voted for a bill that would prohibit local governments from seeking to apply common-sense voter ID. emocratic judges have even ignored voter demands for ballot security measures that would inhibit questionable voting practices. As noted by the New York Post “So much for no means no. That’s the message from the state Court of Appeals, which ruled last week that New Yorkers don’t need an excuse to cast an absentee ballot by mail when they’re otherwise able to vote in person — even though the voters themselves have directly rejected such a measure.” Illustration: Pixabay