Stop NATO news: November 14, 2011

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U.S. Speeds Up Militarization Of Iran’s Neighbors

U.S. To Provide Advanced Interceptor Missiles To United Arab Emirates

Video And Text: Foreign Minister Blasts NATO In Libya, Warning Vis-A-Vis Syria

Video And Text: Libyan Scenario Unfolding In Syria

NATO Nations Arming Syrian Insurgents: Russian Foreign Minister

NATO States Encouraging Syrian Violence, Regime Change: Russia

Middle East: U.S. “Anti-Terrorism” Official Pushes Syrian Sanctions

Obama To Meet With All Major Asia-Pacific Military Allies

Albania, Georgia: NATO Values Troops More Than Democracy

Several Hundred British Troops To Stay In Afghanistan Past 2015

520 NATO Soldiers Killed In Afghanistan This Year

U.S. Trying To Negotiate Extension Of Kyrgyz Air Base

U.S. May Deploy Interceptor Missile Ships In Seas Near Russia: Foreign Minister

Russia Not Interested In NATO’s Opinion Of South Ossetian Election

Over 20,000 Kosovo Serbs Request Russian Passports

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U.S. Speeds Up Militarization Of Iran’s Neighbors

http://rt.com/usa/news/american-nuclear-iran-uae-141/

RT
November 12, 2011

US speeds up militarization of Iran’s neighbors

With American and Iranian relations on the brink of war due to news or a nuclear program being developed out of Tehran, Obama administration insiders say the US is about to cut an arms deal with a powerful American ally in the region.

According to a report published today in the Wall Street Journal, American officials are finalizing a deal that would send advanced “bunker-buster” bombs to the United Arab Emirates in the Persian Gulf. Separated by just a small strait, the UAE has strong ties with American authorities and could help launch an attack on nearby Iran in a moment’s notice should a strike be ordered by Obama.

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“An Iran armed with nuclear weapons is an intolerable threat to regional and international security, and we remain determined to prevent that outcome,” White House press secretary Jay Carney responded to reporters upon the release of the finding.

Sources close to the rumored deal between Washington and Abu Dhabi report that the deal would put 500 Hellfire air-to-surface missiles into the UAE, in addition to 4,900 so-called smart bombs. Those “bunker-busters,” once deployed, could quickly disintegrate underground warhead factories where Iranians are rumored to be working on nuclear weaponry.

Additionally, a report today in Politico suggests that the United States has also sold similar equipment to Israel as word circulates that the Jewish state is at risk of warring with Iran.

On Thursday, the White House’s Carney added that the Obama administration was “looking at additional ways to apply pressure on Iran.”

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U.S. To Provide Advanced Interceptor Missiles To United Arab Emirates

http://www.ainonline.com/?q=aviation-news/dubai-air-show/2011-11-13/thaad-target-uae

Aviation Week
November 13, 2011

THAAD on Target for UAE
By David Donald

Lockheed Martin’s Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system successfully undertook a sophisticated “two versus two” trial-firing last month, and the air defense system has just completed a final review regarding the possible sale to the United Arab Emirates, which could be announced imminently.

THAAD has been on the table for the UAE since discussions began in 2007 between the UAE Air Force and Air Defense (AFAD), U.S. Central Command, U.S. Missile Defense Agency, and contractors Lockheed Martin and Raytheon. These talks focused on providing an integrated air defense system for the Emirates in the light of increased threats in the region.

The first tangible product was an order for the Raytheon-led Patriot PAC-3 system. Lockheed Martin supplies the PAC-3 interceptors, but PAC-3 can also fire the Raytheon PAC-2 GEM-T missile, and the first test rounds were delivered this year. The UAE has nine fire units (batteries) on order.

Lockheed Martin leads the THAAD effort, and the UAE was the first export customer to be cleared to receive the system. THAAD has completed 12 successful flight tests, nine of which involved target engagements. The latest test, FTT-12, was undertaken on October 5 at the Pacific Missile Test Range at Barking Sands, Hawaii. Two interceptors were launched successfully against two targets in a near-simultaneous engagement.

The FTT-12 firings were conducted by U.S. Army soldiers from the service’s first THAAD battery rather than by contractor personnel. One of the missile targets was launched after being air-dropped from the rear ramp of an airborne Boeing C-17 transport, while the other target was fired from a seaborne platform. Further tests are planned for late next year, and could involve a large interoperable scenario. The UAE has been a participant in the THAAD flight tests.

Currently the U.S. Army has fielded two THAAD batteries, with a third to stand up next year. Lockheed Martin is contracted for four, although the outlined requirement is for nine. The UAE’s opening request covered three fire units, but the initial requirement has been reduced to two, along with a corresponding reduction in interceptors and radars.

[T]here is significant interest in upgraded Patriot and THAAD systems [in the region]. Kuwait and Qatar have both reported interest in the latter.

As well as anticipating finalization of the THAAD contract, Lockheed Martin is awaiting the outcome of another UAE decision concerning an air defense battle management system, for which the company is competing against ThalesRaytheonSystems. Both competitors are demonstrating their systems to the UAE this week. The air operations center will integrate the operations of all air defense assets, to include PAC-3 and THAAD, and could grow to form the basis of a much wider C4I (command, control, communications, computers and intelligence) infrastructure.

MEADS Over-the-Shoulder Test This Week

This week Lockheed Martin will conduct a launcher characterization firing of a PAC-3 MSE interceptor at the White Sands range in New Mexico. Although it will not go up against a target, it will be the first “over-the-shoulder” firing to test the missile’s envelope. PAC-3 MSE is the interceptor vehicle for the MEADS (medium-altitude extended air defense system). Last week the MEADS system underwent a successful simulated engagement against real-world air and simulated missile threats.

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Video And Text: Foreign Minister Blasts NATO In Libya, Warning Vis-A-Vis Syria

http://rt.com/news/syria-religious-extremists-finance-007/

RT
November 13, 2011

‘Gaddafi couldn’t kill more people than NATO did’ – Syrian deputy FM

Video

Even if Gaddafi had lived for another 100 years, he could not have killed even a fraction of the number obliterated by NATO during its intervention in Libya, claims Syria’s deputy Foreign Minister, Faisal al-Mikdad, in an exclusive interview with RT.

The top Syrian diplomat recalled that NATO’s aggression against Libya was carried out under the guise of restoring human rights and protecting civilians.

‘They send money to kill Syrians’

Syria’s deputy FM has demanded that the countries financially and militarily supporting armed religious extremists on his country’s soil assume responsibility for financing terrorism.

Faisal al-Mikdad acknowledges that terrorist groups within Syria are being financed in an unofficial way by Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Lebanon and Jordan, and he has appealed to the people of these countries not to support such activities.

“Our appeal to our brothers and sisters in all those countries is not to allow that, because under the UN this is called ‘financing of terrorism’. They send money to kill Syrians. And I believe this should be stopped,” explains al-Mikdad.

Soldiers’ deaths disregarded

The senior diplomat’s comments come as the UN human rights chief warned that Syria is very close to a Libya-style situation, where an uprising against a long-standing leader morphed into a civil war.

Syrian human rights organizations and the UN say that 3,500 people have died in the anti-government protests since their start eight months ago.

However, Syria’s deputy FM Faisal al-Mikdad has cast doubt on the wisdom of the West’s approach to the crisis in his country.

“The credibility of some international non-governmental organizations has been lost because they do not take into consideration what is really happening [in Syria]. Not one of these organizations has mentioned  that Syria has lost more than 1,150 martyrs from the army and security forces,” the deputy FM says.

Extremists shoot civilians to keep show on road

He confirms that many civilians have been assassinated in the unrest, but “people have to ask the questions, who killed them and why were they killed?”

Faisal al-Mikdad says that criminals detained by police confessed to shooting at peaceful demonstrators and killing them, “to keep the pace of demonstrations going on.”

The deputy FM denies that Syria is in a state of civil war but stresses that those provoking the unrest aim to push the country into civil conflict. Syrian society is very complex, and as Faisal al-Mikdad put it, “we have something from everything.”

Syria historically has three monotheistic religions, with lots of denominations in each one of them. Those well-organized and equipped foreign religious extremists who instigate violence need the people of Syria to fight each other, admits Faisal al-Mikdad.

The Deputy FM stresses that billions of dollars and tens of thousands of small arms have been smuggled into Syria from Turkey, Lebanon, Iraq and other neighboring countries to encourage people to incite disturbances in the country.

Faisal al-Mikdad assures that among the armed protestors there are no civilians fighting for a better life but only radical Islamists, and that the peaceful opposition has been officially recognized by the Syrian government and its views taken into account in order to work together to build a new Syria.

‘We did not expect such violence’

The deputy Syrian FM recognizes that mistakes have been made and time lost in reforming the political landscape within the country.

“These are realities, we have to accept them,” Faisal al-Mikdad says. “What we did not expect was that things would develop in such a violent way that contradicts the spirit of the Syrian people,” he confesses, stressing that social media has not been banned in the country despite the apparently negative role it played in the unrest.

Faisal al-Mikdad insists that all talk of a conflict of the ruling Alawite minority and the Sunni majority is misleading and aimed at disintegration of the country, as every Syrian citizen, despite his religion or nationality, has the right to occupy any official position.

“In Syria we have a political system that defends the sovereignty of the country,” he says.

“In Syria we are under such an attack because we say no to the policies of the US in the region, supporting the subjugation of the region to their interests and serving the major interests of Israel,” proclaims the Syrian deputy FM.

He believes that NATO has not intervened in Syria because the whole region opposes it, after seeing Gaddafi’s Libya bombed out.

The majority of the UN Security Council is against aggression in Syria, with Russia and China even using their veto right to block a Western resolution designed to slap tougher sanctions on Damascus.

“If they [the West] manipulate the situation in the Middle East – they will do it everywhere in the world.”

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Video And Text: Libyan Scenario Unfolding In Syria

http://rt.com/news/libyan-scenario-in-syria-275/

RT
November 14, 2011

Libyan scenario unfolding in Syria

Video

The “illegitimate” decision to suspend Syria from the Arab League has received wide support from the EU and the US. Russia, however, has strongly opposed the measure, which is starting to look like another step on the road to a Libya-style scenario.

During a press conference on Monday, Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Al-Moallem said that “Libya’s scenario will not be repeated” in Syria despite the Arab League’s decision, which he called a “conspiracy that is bound to fail.”

“The Arab League vote to suspend Syria’s membership was an illegitimate decision prompted by American incitement,” al-Moallem said, as cited by Al-Arabiya. He added that it was reached “under a plan announced about a month ago.”

“Syria has other cards to play if Arab states decide to become conspirators,” the Syrian FM stated.

Nevertheless, Al-Moallem says he still believes in “united Arab action” and said he would welcome Arab League officials and military and civilian observers to visit Syria this week to supervise the implementation of an Arab League roadmap for ending the bloodshed.

Meanwhile in an interview carried by a British news outlet, Jordan’s King Abdullah has called on Syrian President Bashar Assad to resign.

Before Syria was suspended, the two sides – Assad’s regime and the Arab League committee – reached an agreement on how to stop the violence in the country. The League demanded that tanks be pulled off the streets and that a dialogue be opened with the opposition – measures which the authorities vowed to carry out.

However since agreeing to the deal, more than 250 Syrian civilians are reported to have been killed amid a bloody siege of the city of Homs.
The vote to suspend Syria came during an emergency session of the League on November 12 called to discuss Syria’s failure to end the violence. Eighteen countries supported the move while Lebanon, Yemen and Syria voted against it and Iraq abstained.

History of expulsions

Syria has called an emergency meeting of the League in an attempt to reverse the decision which saw it kicked out of the organization. The suspension and accompanying sanctions are due to come into force on Wednesday.

Syria is the second nation to be expelled from the League this year. Libya’s suspension from the regional bloc in February was swiftly followed by a UN Security Council resolution which opened the way for NATO’s intervention in the sovereign state.

Meanwhile, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov expressed Russia’s dismay at the League’s decision to suspend Syria.

“We think it is wrong, and it looks like a planned move,” Lavrov said. “Those who took the decision have lost a very important opportunity to redirect the situation onto a more transparent course.”

Lavrov added that a radical opposition movement in Syria had been incited to overthrow the government and said arms were being smuggled into the country for use by extremists.

Russia has repeatedly pledged to prevent a Libya-style scenario unfolding in Syria and backed up its promise by vetoing the UN resolution on Syria on October 5. The move caused outrage among the majority of the UNSC member states.

Syria was one of the founders of the Arab League, and its sudden suspension has triggered pro-Assad demonstrations in Syria and attacks on the Turkish, French and Saudi Arabian embassies in Damascus.

Commenting on the attacks on its missions, Turkey said it would take a “decisive attitude” and continue to support the Syrian people’s rightful struggle for freedoms and reforms. Earlier, Turkey welcomed the decision of the Arab League.

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NATO Nations Arming Syrian Insurgents: Russian Foreign Minister

http://www.monstersandcritics.com/news/europe/news/article_1675051.php/Russia-s-Lavrov-accuses-West-of-arming-Syrian-opposition

Deutsche Presse-Agentur
November 14, 2011

Russia’s Lavrov accuses West of arming Syrian opposition

Moscow – Western nations are illicitly providing arms to Syria’s opposition to force the overthrow of President Bashar al-Assad, Russia’s top diplomat said Monday.

‘Nobody is commenting on it and no one is admitting it, but the facts are impossible to contradict: weapons are being smuggled into Syria from Turkey and Iraq,’ said Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.

‘Armed extremists are using peaceful demonstrations to provoke Syrian government violence,’ Lavrov was quoted by the Interfax news agency as saying.

Calls by NATO countries on the al-Assad regime to stop using force to maintain order are self-serving, Lavrov said, considering that some of those very nations are providing weapons to a Syrian opposition responsible for violent protests.

‘Russia is deeply disappointed by this,’ Lavrov said, singling out France and the United States as countries he felt were being especially hypocritical on Syria.

Commenting on a recent Arab League decision to suspend Syria’s membership of the organization, Lavrov said the Kremlin felt the measure was unjustified and that the censure would reduce, rather than increase, the chances of ending violence in the country.

‘We consider it (the suspension) improper. It looks like it was planned ahead of time. Those who made that decision threw away a very important chance to transfer the situation to a more transparent level,’ he said.

The Arab League on Saturday suspended Syria’s membership. It also called on Damascus to implement an Arab deal to end violence against protesters and to hold transition talks with the opposition.

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http://www.itar-tass.com/en/c32/271330.html

Itar-Tass
November 14, 2011

Facts say contraband arms supplied to Syria

MOSCOW: There is conclusive evidence that contraband weapons via Lebanon, Turkey, Iran and other countries have been supplied to Syria, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Monday.

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NATO States Encouraging Syrian Violence, Regime Change: Russia

http://en.rian.ru/world/20111114/168686212.html

Russian Information Agency Novosti
November 14, 2011

West ‘encouraging’ Syrian opposition to continue standoff – Lavrov

KHABAROVSK: The West is encouraging the Syrian opposition to continue its confrontation with the ruling regime and Washington is “persistently and publicly” advising them to reject all peace proposals, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Monday.

“The radical opposition is being incited to set a firm course toward regime change and reject all compromise proposals,” Lavrov said.

Russia was “greatly disappointed” with the fact that Washington advised the opposition against responding to President Bashar Al Assad’s call to lay down arms in return for an amnesty, Lavrov said.

Russia is not abandoning its efforts to resolve the Syrian crisis, the minister went on, and on Tuesday Burhan Galyun, a representative of the opposition National Council, will visit Moscow.

On Saturday the Arab League suspended Syria from the organization and said it will impose harsh economic and political sanctions against Assad’s government.

Last week Damascus agreed to accept the Arab League peace plan on Syria.

Under the plan, Syria would release political prisoners detained during the ongoing conflict, and all military equipment would be removed from urban areas.

…

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Middle East: U.S. “Anti-Terrorism” Official Pushes Syrian Sanctions

http://en.trend.az/regions/met/arabicr/1956482.html

Deutsche Presse-Agentur
November 14, 2011

US official in Amman to seek support for Syria sanctions

A top US anti-terrorism official on Sunday met with Jordanian officials to seek support for economic sanctions against the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, according to the US embassy in Amman, dpa reported.

US Assistant Secretary of Treasury for Terrorist Financing Daniel Glaser discussed “possible attempts by the Syrian government to evade US and EU sanctions through the Jordanian financial sector,” the embassy said.

The United States and the European Union recently toughened sanctions against al-Assad…

On November 7, Syrian Prime Minister Adel Safar said the sanctions, particularly on the oil sector, were crippling the economy.

The US official also planned to meet with banking executives “to underscore the importance of Jordan’s continued effort to maintain a transparent, sound and well-regulated financial sector,” the embassy said Sunday.

Jordan is the final stop in a trip which has already taken Glaser to Moscow and Beirut.

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Obama To Meet With All Major Asia-Pacific Military Allies

http://www.voanews.com/english/news/asia/US-Pacific-Commander-Budget-Problems-Will-Not-Undermine-US-Military-133781633.html

Voice of America News
November 13, 2011

US Pacific Commander: Budget Problems Will Not Undermine US Military
Dan Robinson

-U.S. officials note that by the end of his Asia-Pacific trip, President Obama will have met with leaders of all of its Asia-Pacific treaty partners, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, South Korea, Thailand and the Philippines.

Honolulu: The head of the U.S. Pacific Command said Sunday he is confident that American military forces in the Asia-Pacific region will continue to have the support they need to maintain their forward presence. 

After the APEC summit, the focus of President Barack Obama’s Asia-Pacific trip shifts from trade and closer economic cooperation to security.

He is set to leave Hawaii on Tuesday for Australia, where the two allies are expected to announce an agreement to expand U.S. military access to Australian bases. Then, it is on to Bali and the East Asia summit, which is emerging as a major forum for discussion of security and reducing tensions over issues such as rival claims in the South China Sea.

In remarks to reporters in Honolulu, Navy Admiral Robert Willard said managing the U.S. relationship with China is among five priorities for the U.S. Pacific Command. 

On regional concerns about China’s actions in the South China Sea, Willard noted the importance of sea lanes for trade, $5.3 trillion annually of which $1.2 trillion of trade involves the United States.

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Asked whether the expected U.S.-Australia agreement would serve as a “counterweight” in the region to China, Admiral Willard indicated that new access there would help relieve the pressure of maintaining an effective and sustained forward-deployed U.S. presence.

The admiral was also asked about recent remarks by U.S. Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta, who warned that potential deeper U.S. budget cuts for the Pentagon could hamper American military capabilities and possibly “invite aggression.”

Referring to a defense posture review underway as the U.S. military transitions out of wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, and budgetary challenges, Admiral Willard said he is confident that decisions made in Washington will not undercut the forces he oversees.

“I have every confidence that in the decisions that our government makes, that our administration makes and that are made in the Pentagon, given the importance of this region to the world and the importance of this region to the United States, that the Pacific Command will continue to be well served and able to carry out its mission of assurance and deterrence where required into the foreseeable future,” he said.

Admiral Willard listed other U.S. priorities in the Asia-Pacific region as managing the threat posed by North Korea, “transnational” threats such as countering weapons proliferation, containing violent extremist groups in places such as the Philippines, and containing threats in South Asia by the group Lashkar-e-Taiba.

In South Asia, Willard said, the United States has a “special focus” on strengthening military-to-military ties with India, in areas such as maritime security, including anti-piracy activities.

U.S. officials note that by the end of his Asia-Pacific trip, President Obama will have met with leaders of all of its Asia-Pacific treaty partners, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, South Korea, Thailand and the Philippines.

Deputy National Security Adviser for Strategic Communications Ben Rhodes says that in coming days, Mr. Obama will be speaking more about the range of security issues in the region and the U.S. presence there…

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Albania, Georgia: NATO Values Troops More Than Democracy

http://www.themoscowtimes.com/opinion/article/nato-values-soldiers-more-than-democracy/447705.html

Moscow Times
November 13, 2011

NATO Values Soldiers More Than Democracy
By Paul Rimple

On Thursday, NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen met with Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili in Batumi and delivered his anticipated message. He thanked Georgia for its contribution to the International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan and commended its efforts to battle corruption and the progress in democratic and economic reforms. But Rasmussen stressed again that more work was needed “to show determination to undertake further reforms.”

Saakashvili’s response may not have been calculated, but the point was clear. “I was hoping you would at least have brought me a NATO jacket,” he said.

Since the 2008 NATO summit in Bucharest, when France and Germany shot down Georgia’s opportunity to join the Membership Action Plan, NATO has been dangling the issue of “more democratic reform” like a carrot on a string. It’s not about “if” Georgia is a member, they still say, it’s about “when.”

When Albania was invited into NATO in 2008, it was ranked 85 on Transparency International’s corruption index, with 180 being the worst. Georgia was 80. The next year, Albania’s parliamentary elections were wrought with fraud, while its democratic reform progress had not advanced in five years. The European Union called for rigorous implementation of anti-corruption measures in its 2008 progress report.

This might explain why Georgia hasn’t been concerned with improving the rule of law, deepening judiciary and electoral reform and fostering media freedom. Georgia knows EU-Russian relations are a greater priority than Georgian membership. All the authorities have to do is not backslide. Today, Georgia is ranked 68 on the corruption index, while Albania is 87.

It’s not easy to strengthen principles like equality before the law, so Saakashvili has pledged to contribute additional troops to the 950 already serving in Afghanistan. This will make Georgia the largest non-NATO contributor to the International Security Assistance Force. Most Georgians serve in the Helmand province, a Taliban stronghold, where so far 10 Georgian soldiers have been killed.

If NATO is sincere about Georgia’s democratic reform process, it should set concrete marks for the government to meet. Saying, “We are looking forward to seeing the necessary reforms introduced,” is not the same as, “You have to ensure there is a free electoral system before we can sign anything.”

But with Albania as a benchmark for democratic reform, NATO might as well just say, “You guys are fine. You’re just going to be on hold for an indefinite time.”

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Several Hundred British Troops To Stay In Afghanistan Past 2015

http://english.ruvr.ru/2011/11/14/60360886.html

Voice of Russia
November 14, 2011

UK troops to stay in Afghanistan
Sergei Sayenko

Hundreds of British soldiers will stay in Afghanistan after the UK pulls out its combat troops in 2015, the Chief of the UK Defense Staff General Sir David Richards said speaking on the BBC’s program.

According to General Richards, the residual figure of the troops to stay is undecided…He said that Britain’s role was not to “extinguish the insurgency” but to reduce it to a level that Afghan security forces could take on. In his words, Britain is pursuing this agenda with success.

The latter statement is questionable, given that the situation in Afghanistan is not getting better after more than ten years of the ISAF’s anti-Taliban operations in the country. ISAF servicemen and Afghan security officers die in Afghanistan nearly every day. Britain has lost 385 servicemen in Afghanistan, and the US over 1815…

The handover of power from the ISAF to the Afghan authorities was scheduled for June 22nd this year. Most observers and independent experts believe, however, that the Afghan police and military forces are not ready for assuming this kind of responsibility despite the fact that the Afghan army has currently more than 150,000–strong personnel. Even though the quantity of the local army is comparable to the ISAF force, its quality leaves a lot to be desired.

Afghanistan’s current authorities have managed to carry on solely due to the presence of international forces, first of all, from the US. However, the more the US and its allies get bogged down in Afghanistan, the smaller part of the country’s territory remains under their control. Unlike at the beginning of the ISAF operation when many dubbed President Hamid Karzai the “mayor of Kabul”, now the scale of his rule has shrunk to only parts of the capital.

Gen Richards’ statement that only several hundred UK troops will stay in Afghanistan after 2015…looks strange. Given that the 9,500-strong UK force within the 150,000-strong ISAF contingent has failed to tackle the crisis, a few hundred will make no difference at all.

Afghanistan today is a puzzle hard to solve. Whether the Afghan authorities and ISAF leadership should enter talks with Taliban is unclear. No one knows whether the US will act on its promise to pull out its troops by 2014. This will largely depend on the outcome of the 2012 presidential elections in the US. If a Republican president takes over, he will have a free hand without being obliged to keep his predecessor’s promises.

Even if Barack Obama’s early promises take upper hand and the US troops do leave Afghanistan, the US will never consent to lose control over such a crucial point in its struggle for supremacy in the Greater Middle East. As it happens, despite Gen Richards’ statements, both the UK troops and their US counterparts will have to stay in Afghanistan for years ahead.

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520 NATO Soldiers Killed In Afghanistan This Year

http://channel6newsonline.com/2011/11/insurgents-kill-nato-soldier-in-eastern-afghanistan-2/

BNO News
November 14, 2011

Insurgents kill NATO soldier in eastern Afghanistan

KABUL: A coalition service member was killed on Monday when he was attacked by insurgents in eastern Afghanistan, the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) said.

ISAF said one of its service members was killed as a result of an insurgent attack in Afghanistan’s east. But as usual, the multinational force gave no other details about the incident, including the exact location.

The nationality of the service member was also not immediately disclosed by ISAF. “It is ISAF policy to defer casualty identification procedures to the relevant national authorities,” a brief statement said.

Coalition casualties in Afghanistan have been rising sharply in recent years with a total coalition death toll of 709 in 2010, making it the deadliest year for international troops since the war began…

…

So far this year, at least 520 coalition service members have been killed in Afghanistan. Most troops are American and are killed in the country’s south, which is plagued by IED attacks on troops and civilians.

The deadliest incident happened in August when a U.S. helicopter crashed in eastern Afghanistan, killing 30 U.S. troops, seven Afghan troops and an Afghan interpreter.

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U.S. Trying To Negotiate Extension Of Kyrgyz Air Base

http://en.trend.az/regions/world/usa/1956578.html

Trend News Agency
November 14, 2011

U.S., Kyrgyzstan in talks on ‘Manas’ transit center

Negotiations on the U.S. Transit Center at “Manas” are underway with the Kyrgyz leadership, CA-News quotes the U.S. Ambassador to Bishkek Pamela Spratlen as saying.

“The issue is under discussion. Negotiations are underway with the Kyrgyz side on its stay,” Spratlen said at the opening of the Global Entrepreneurship Week in Bishkek on Nov.14.

Earlier, Prime Minister Atambayev has repeatedly stated that the current military Transit Center of the U.S. at the “Manas” Airport should be civil.

He also reminded that the agreement between Kyrgyzstan and the U.S. on this Center expires in 2014.

An agreement on deploying the U.S. military base in the country’s territory is in effect until 2014.

A U.S. Air Force base was deployed at the International Airport Manas in the capital of Kyrgyzstan in 2001 within the Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan.

Later, it was renamed the Transit Center (TC), which is the key point of transportation of the U.S. military equipment and servicemen toward the places of war actions in Afghanistan.

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U.S. May Deploy Interceptor Missile Ships In Seas Near Russia: Foreign Minister

http://www.interfax.com/newsinf.asp?pg=7&id=286950

Interfax
November 14, 2011

U.S. may deploy ship-based interceptor missiles in seas around Russia – Lavrov

KHABAROVSK: The U.S. does not rule out the deployment of ships carrying interceptor missiles in the Black, Baltic and North Seas, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told reporters on his way from Hawaii to Moscow.

“The United States does not rule out – and the option has been admitted – the possible deployment of warships carrying interceptor missiles not only in the Mediterranean Sea but also in the Black Sea, the Barents Sea, the North Sea and the Baltic Sea. They keep telling us not to worry: the plans are not targeted against us. We cannot accept that,” he said.

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http://english.ruvr.ru/2011/11/14/60349774.html

Itar-Tass
November 14, 2011

US may deploy ships in Black, Barents, North, Baltic Seas – Lavrov

       
Moscow does not rule out that the United States may deploy its naval ships in the Black, Barents, North and Baltic Seas in the framework of setting up the Euro-ABM system, said the Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov during a news conference earlier today.

He emphasized that there were still no legal guarantees that Euro-ABM would not be aimed against Russia. On Iran’s nuclear programme, Lavrov said it should be settled diplomatically via the efforts of six mediator-nations.

The potential of sanctions against Iran has been exhausted, the Russian Foreign Minister said. He urged the IAEA to name the countries that had provided the Agency with information for its report on Iran’s nuclear R&D.

Russia’s topmost diplomat also described the suspension of Syria’s Arab League membership as counterproductive. An official of Syria’s opposition National Council is due to arrive in Moscow for talks on a settlement in Syria, Lavrov said.

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Russia Not Interested In NATO’s Opinion Of South Ossetian Election

http://english.ruvr.ru/2011/11/14/60366340.html

Itar-Tass
November 14, 2011

Russia not interested in NATO opinion on election

Russia does not care about NATO’s opinion of the election results in South Ossetia, Russia’s ambassador to NATO Dmitry Rogozin said, commenting on NATO’s declaration of “non-recognition of the election results in South Ossetia”.

This issue is beyond the scope of NATO, as the alliance is not a humanitarian organization and has no observers in the region or at the election, Rogozin stressed.

The second round of the presidential election in South Ossetia is to be held on the 27th of November, with two candidates: ex-Minister of Education Alla Djioyeva and the head of the local branch of the Emergency Ministry Anatoly Bibilov. Each of them received over 25% of votes in the first round.

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Over 20,000 Kosovo Serbs Request Russian Passports

http://english.ruvr.ru/2011/11/14/60351111.html

Voice of Russia
November 14, 2011

20,000 Kosovo Serbs want Russian passports

       
Over 20,000 Kosovo Serbs have asked the Russian Parliament’s lower house, the State Duma, to help them obtain Russian citizenship, said the Russian Embassy Counsellor Oleg Bouldakov in Belgrade.

They cite security guarantees against the Albanian authorities of the self-proclaimed Kosovo as the main reason for their request.

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