After the summit from the Haag
Military expert Carlo Masala sees NATO weakened
NATO celebrated the “strongest alliance of history” at the summit in the Hague. Political scientist Carlo Masala, on the other hand, sees the state of alliance critically.
According to the political scientist and military expert Carlo Masala, the NATO summit in the Hague did not bring much. “It was certainly not a summit where you can say that NATO is stronger from it,” said Masala of the German Press Agency in Cologne. Ukraine did not play a role in the summit and the Russian threat was not named clearly enough. With that, NATO basically took a step back. “I would currently see NATO in a very precarious stage.”
The fact that NATO countries want to spend five percent of their gross domestic product for defense from 2035 should primarily be part of the strategy to please US President Donald Trump. “Because this five percent does not get out of the European discussion, but they come because you are afraid that if you don’t deliver it, the United States will withdraw its security guarantee.” It should be seen whether the member states really adhered to this five percent agreement. Spain and Slovakia openly opposed it, and Italy was not really happy with it either.
Rutte “no longer beaten in any embarrassment”
Doubts about the reliability of the United States in the event of alliance are still appropriate. “It is the case with Trump, even if he says today he is behind it, it can be completely different tomorrow.” In this context, the NATO partners would have placed very careful to caress Trump. “That can work – or not. Who knows?”
Masala suffered violent criticism to NATO general secretary Mark Rutte, who had sent Trump a flattering SMS, which he then published. “What Rutte did, also at his press conference with Trump, can no longer be beaten in terms of embarrassment,” said Masala. “I can understand that you do a lot to keep the Americans in Europe, but in the submissiveness, in which Rutte does it, this is absolutely not appropriate for a NATO general secretary.”
The problem is that one has to assume that Russia could attack a NATO state at the end of this decade to test whether the Alliance really comes to the aid of this country. So there is not much time to remain: “Tempo, pace, pace. We need a European strategy of how we can replace what the United States has done so far,” said Masala. “The solution to the personnel problem is very important. If it is not about voluntariness, conscription must be introduced quickly.”
Masala will present his book “If Russia wins. A scenario” on Saturday at the Phil.Cologne Philosophief Festival in Cologne.
dpa
Source: Stern
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