The Cold War threat is long gone and the US will no longer shoulder the burden of carrying Europe militarily, US Defense Secretary Gates warns NATO.
Keep that in mind the next time some European politician chides the US on its “profligate spending”…
While all members of the 28-nation alliance approved the Libya mission, fewer than half are participating, and even a smaller fraction are conducting air-to-ground strike missions.
“Frankly, many of those allies sitting on the sidelines do so not because they do not want to participate, but simply because they can’t. The military capabilities simply aren’t there,” he said.
