Nato must reach out to emerging powers such as China and India as it transforms into a 21st century guardian of international security against modern threats, Nato chief Anders Fogh Rasmussen said Friday. Rasmussen wants the 28-nation alliance to deepen relations with key partners in the Asia-Pacific region such as Australia and South Korea, but also with eastern Mediterranean countries including Israel and Egypt.
He suggested that Nato creates a system of political and military consultations with emerging powers. Three of the five permanent members of the UN Security Council - the United States, Britain and France - are full-fledged members of Nato and have formal talks with Russia within the Nato-Russia Council.
But there is no organised dialogue with China, the fifth veto-wielding member of the Security Council, Rasmussen told the German Marshall Fund think tank. "It makes sense to extend our range of consultations to also include countries like China and India in our regular consultations," Rasmussen said. In a speech, Rasmussen said Nato must transform to face new dangers such as cyber attacks, ballistic missiles and global terrorism as he outlined his views on a new "strategic concept" that Nato leaders will adopt in November.
"The time has now come for 'Nato 3.0,' an alliance which can defend the 900 million citizens of Nato countries against the threats they face today, and will face in the coming decade," he said.
Rasmussen presented his vision for the strategic concept, which he drafted following proposals by experts, ahead of a meeting of Nato foreign and defence ministers next Thursday in Brussels. It will replace a text adopted in 1999 and be adopted by Nato leaders at a summit in Lisbon on November 19-20. Nato must first modernise its defence and deterrence capabilities but the concept of collective defence will always remain a pillar of the military alliance, Rasmussen said.
The alliance must be ready to take on "21st century crisis management" following the experience in Afghanistan, a nine-year-old war that now counts around 150,000 international troops, he said. "Afghanistan has taught us some very clear lessons, lessons we have learned at a very high price," Rasmussen said, regretting that it took until 2008 to set up a training mission for Afghan forces. "Waiting that long was a mistake. We won't repeat it," he said. "I hope the strategic concept will mandate Nato to set up a standing training capacity, so we can help others stand on their feet, rather than leaning on us."
The alliance also needs to undertake a more comprehensive approach to co-ordinate military and civilian efforts in conflicts, and work more closely with partners such as the European Union and UN on the ground, Rasmussen said. "We've learned that there is often no military solution solely to crises and conflicts. It's true in Afghanistan, it's true in many of the other conflicts underway today. The military is necessary - but it is not sufficient." The alliance must also find the "right balance" regarding two principles on nuclear weapons: the goal set by US President Barack Obama to rid the world of atomic bombs and the need for Nato to keep its deterrent "as long as there are nuclear weapons in the world," he said.
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