Today is the 80th anniversary of the D-Day landing at #Normandy, #France, where ~160k #Allied troops pulled off the largest invasion by sea in history. From that point on #America was in charge of #AlliedForces & it was the beginning of the end of #WWII
#Russia President Vladimir #Putin was not invited due to the invasion of #Ukraine which is somewhat ironic since back in 1944 the Soviet Union was one of the #allied countries fighting Germany. Of course, it wasn't long after the war that the North Atlantic Treaty Organization ( #NATO ) was formed to provide a formal, ongoing #alliance to assure the collective #security of its members in the wake of Soviet machinations in Eastern Europe & Berlin.
#Biden calls #America’s democratic values the “grounding wire of our global power” & its #alliances “our greatest asset.” …#Trump, called for withdrawing American forces in #Europe & #Asia & has promised… to cut loose even our closest #allies if they don’t do as he tells them. …Trump sees all countries as unreliable, the relations between them #transactional. That sentiment has spread throughout a #GOP that once championed America’s values abroad…
#Biden leads the #UnitedStates as the American century is fading into an uncertain future, a changing world of #threats, opportunities, & #power shifts. At 81, he holds fast to a vision that has reigned since WWII, in which a rich & powerful America leads an #alliance of #democracies to safeguard the globe from #tyranny.
President #Xi has told his military to be ready to invade #Taiwan by 2027…. #Biden doesn’t rule out sending troops to defend Taiwan if #China attacked, saying, “It would depend on the circumstances.”
Biden’s record in facing these tests is more than just nostalgic talk. He has added 2 powerful European militaries to #NATO, & will soon announce the doubling of the number of countries in the Atlantic #alliance that are paying more than the target 2% of their GDP toward #defense….
#Biden’s admin has worked to prevent the #war in #Gaza from igniting a broader regional conflict. He brokered the 1st trilateral summit w/long-distrustful regional partners #SouthKorea & #Japan, & coaxed the #Philippines to move away from China’s orbit & accept 4 new #US military bases. He has rallied countries in #Europe & #Asia to curtail #China’s economic sway. “We have put together the strongest #alliance in the history of the world,” Biden says…. #ForeignPolicy#geopolitics#BidenHarris2024
With continued American #aid to #Ukraine stalled & against the looming prospect of a 2nd Trump presidency, #NATO ofcls are looking to take more #control of directing #military support from Ukraine’s allies — a role that the #US has played for the past 2 yrs.
Under a prop being discussed at the #military#alliance’s HQ, #NATO would oversee the #Ukraine#Defense Contact Grp, currently led by the #UnitedStates, that coordinates the donation & delivery of weapons to the battlefield.…
“A stronger NATO role in coordinating & providing support is the way to end this #war in a way where Ukraine prevails,” SecGen Stoltenberg said on Wed.
“There is a need to give this a more robust & institutional framework to ensure #predictability & #commitment for the long haul,” Stoltenberg said. He added: “I strongly believe it’s important that #allies make decisions fast. And that includes, of course, the #UnitedStates.”
Stoltenberg would not discuss specifics, but said he hoped to have the new efforts approved in time for a July summit of #NATO ldrs in DC, where ofcls are expected to again debate when #Ukraine might be allowed to join the #military#alliance….
…A… NATO ofcl said that Hungary, where PM Viktor #Orban has maintained warm relations w/ #Russia, opposed the effort to put the #Defense Contact Grp under the alliance’s oversight.
Western countries, including the #UnitedStates, shouldn’t be entirely opposed to the idea of sending #troops to Ukraine if conditions there worsen, said Finnish Foreign Minister #ElinaValtonen.
#Finland appeared closed off to the idea only a few weeks ago. After meeting w/ #Macron during a summit of #EU leaders in late Feb, then-Finnish President Sauli #Niinistö said “there was a widely shared perception that there would be no #military presence” — meaning no deployment of Western soldiers to Kyiv. He added, “this was also Finland’s position.”
Sweden joined NATO in Washington on Thurs, 2yrs after #Russia's #invasion of Ukraine forced it to rethink its #NationalSecurity policy & conclude …the #alliance was the Scandinavian nation's best guarantee of #safety.
PM Ulf Kristersson handed over the final documentation to the #UnitedStates govt on Thurs, the last step… to secure the backing… to join the #military alliance.
"Good things come to those who wait," #UnitedStates Secretary of State Antony #Blinken said as he received #Sweden's accession docs from Kristersson.
"This is a historic moment for Sweden, for our alliance & for the transatlantic relationship," Blinken said.
For #NATO, the accessions of Sweden & #Finland - which shares a 1,340 km border w/ #Russia - are the most significant additions in decades. It is also a blow for #Putin who has sought to prevent any further strengthening of the #alliance.