But he then segued seamlessly into identifying that NATO's main prospective target remains what it has always been: Russia. Without identifying it (or needing to in the following context), he said:
"We also need a visible presence of NATO across the entire territory of our Alliance. And we see a perfect example here in this region. We have put in place arrangements to police the Baltic airspace. A range of NATO members are actively engaged - sharing responsibility - showing solidarity and demonstrating a capable and credible Alliance that is determined to defend our territory and to protect our populations.
"We also need to guard against new risks and threats to the security of our nations, such as energy cut-offs or cyber attacks. And here as well, we have a good example right here in Estonia, with the Alliance's Cyber Defence Centre of Excellence."
There are neither rogue nations nor al-Qaeda operatives with "nuclear suitcases" in the Baltic Sea region. References to energy cut-offs and cyber attacks are undeniable and exclusive allusions to actions NATO states have accused Russian of perpetrating.
The patrolling of Baltic air space by NATO warplanes and the - to call it by its proper name - cyber warfare center in Estonia are both aimed at Russia and Russia only.
In his speech Rasmussen was unequivocal in his pro-nuclear weapons stance. In addition to affirming that "What we...need is a credible nuclear deterrent" - supposedly because of "rogue regimes or terrorist groupings" - he added "for this reason, we also need a credible missile defence system, providing coverage for all the Allies."
Again the connection between U.S. nuclear arms at NATO nations' air bases in Europe and anti-ballistic missile installations on or near Russia's borders was made directly and again with the transparently untenable claim that both are needed against Iran and al-Qaeda.
What plans the new Strategic Concept to be endorsed at the November summit will finalize were indicated in another statement by Rasmussen:
"The United States already has a missile defence system. Some European Allies have a capacity to protect deployed forces against missile attacks....If we connect national systems into a NATO wide missile shield to protect all our Allies, that would be a very powerful demonstration of NATO solidarity in the 21st Century. And I hope we can make progress in that direction by the time of the next NATO Summit in Lisbon in November."
He repeated NATO's position on nuclear arms in an interview on Estonian public television: "If we look at today's world, then there is no alternative to nuclear arms in NATO's deterrent capability....My personal opinion is that the stationing of US nuclear weapons in Europe is part of deterrence to be taken seriously."
The 2010 Strategic Concept will not differ in any substantive manner from the current one adopted in 1999, which states:
"The supreme guarantee of the security of the Allies is provided by the strategic nuclear forces of the Alliance, particularly those of the United States; the independent nuclear forces of the United Kingdom and France, which have a deterrent role of their own, contribute to the overall deterrence and security of the Allies.
"A credible Alliance nuclear posture and the demonstration of Alliance solidarity and common commitment to war prevention continue to require widespread participation by European Allies involved in collective defence planning in nuclear roles, in peacetime basing of nuclear forces on their territory and in command, control and consultation arrangements. Nuclear forces based in Europe and committed to NATO provide an essential political and military link between the European and the North American members of the Alliance. The Alliance will therefore maintain adequate nuclear forces in Europe."
The presence of nuclear weapons in Europe is a foundational tenet of NATO and one of the root purposes for the bloc's existence. The first NATO Strategic Concept (The Strategic Concept For The Defense Of The North Atlantic Area), that of the year of its founding, 1949, includes among its commitments to:
"Insure the ability to carry out strategic bombing including the prompt delivery of the atomic bomb. This is primarily a US responsibility assisted as practicable by other nations."
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