13, April 2021
US officials head to Europe to shore up allied support on Russia, Iran, China 0
Top US officials are in Europe this week seeking to shore up allied support on countering Iran and China as well as recent Russian moves at the Ukraine border. U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin arrived in Berlin on his inaugural tour of Europe while Secretary of State Antony Blinken headed to Brussels on Tuesday for talks on Ukraine and NATO troops in Afghanistan.
Nearly a year after President Donald Trump ordered thousands of troops to leave Germany, capping a series of setbacks for U.S. relations with major allies, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin began an inaugural tour of Europe to shore up partnerships that are a cornerstone of the post-World War II order.
Austin arrived in Berlin on Monday against the backdrop of a newly emerging crisis with Iran, which on Monday blamed Israel for a recent attack on its underground Natanz nuclear facility. Israel has not confirmed or denied involvement, but the attack nonetheless imperils ongoing talks in Europe over Tehran’s tattered nuclear deal.
Also at stake in Austin’s visit is the future direction of U.S. defense commitments in Europe at a time of growing concern about Russian military intervention on NATO’s periphery, including a buildup of Russian forces near Ukraine’s border. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken was headed to Europe to discuss with U.S. allies the Ukraine situation as well as the administration’s thinking on further withdrawals of troops from Afghanistan.
The United States also seeks European support for its approach to countering China around the world and for efforts to restore an international agreement with limits on Iran’s nuclear program.
Austin arrived in the German capital on Monday night and will hold talks Tuesday with senior government officials. He will also visit NATO headquarters later this week in Belgium and meet with British defense officials in London. He began his trip Sunday in Israel, where he underscored U.S. defense support in meetings with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Benny Gantz.
Austin, a former four-star Army general whose overseas military experience was primarily in Iraq, is likely to assure German officials of intentions by the Biden administration to keep troops in Germany, though the number is subject to discussion as part of a monthslong global review of the basing of U.S. troops. Last year, Trump ordered the number in Germany reduced by about 12,000, to about 24,000.
In his first visit to NATO headquarters in Brussels since taking office, Austin will meet with Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg, who declared on President Joe Biden’s inauguration day that the arrival of a new administration marked “the start of a new chapter for the trans-Atlantic alliance.”
Trump’s departure from the world stage gave the Biden administration an opening to restore a more supportive U.S. approach to Europe and the NATO alliance, but complications will persist. For example, the NATO allies are anxious for Biden to decide whether to pull out of Afghanistan. NATO has more troo ps there than does the United States, and Biden’s indecision troubles them, not least because they count on U.S. military support for removing troops and equipment.
The attack on Iran’s Natanz nuclear facility further complicates U.S. efforts to draw Iran back into a nuclear deal. Austin was asked about this earlier Monday while in Israel, and he said only that he expects the administration’s diplomatic efforts with Iran will continue.
‘Pivot’ to Asia
On the broader horizon, the European allies remain uncertain how their defense and security relationship with the United States will be affected by Biden’s push to focus more on China as the chief threat to U.S. security. That shift in U.S. thinking began during the Obama administration, which announced a “pivot” to Asia that left Europeans thinking their U.S. ally was turning its back. Washington adjusted diplomatically and rhetorically, assuring the Europeans that it was just a “rebalancing.”
Then came Trump. His administration further emphasized China as the prime security threat, but of greater concern to the Europeans was his frequent, sometimes shocking, denigration of the trans-Atlantic partnership that had been the foundation of U.S. security policy for decades. He dismissed the NATO allies as freeloaders, and last summer he ordered the removal of about one-third of the U.S. force in Germany, as well as the move of U.S. European Command headquarters from Germany to Belgium.
“We don’t want to be the suckers anymore,” Trump told reporters last July, calling the Germans ingrates who don’t spend enough on defense but expect the United States to protect them from Russia.
Germany has been an anchor for the U.S. military presence in Europe since the early post-World War II years. In addition to hosting the headquarters for U.S. European and U.S. Africa commands, Germany’s Ramstein Air Base is headquarters for NATO air and missile defenses. The U.S. Army’s largest overseas hospital, the Landstuhl Regional Medical Center, is a few miles from Ramstein Air Base. The U.S. Air Force also has a substantial presence in Germany, including the 52nd Fighter Wing at Spangdahlem.
In his first speech to an international audience, Biden in February declared to the Munich Security Conference: “America is back, the trans-Atlantic alliance is back, and we are not looking backward. We are looking forward together.”
Biden suspended the Trump decision on a partial withdrawal of troops from Germany, which had not yet been implemented. It seems likely the administration will decide not to carry out the Trump order.
Jim Townsend, who served throughout the Obama administration as the Pentagon’s lead policy official on Europe and NATO, said in an interview that he sees lasting value in Austin’s touring of European capitals early in his tenure.
“It’s a better way to repair the torn fabric of that trans-Atlantic relationship,” Townsend said.
Even if the Europeans can put the Trump-era tensions behind them, they will still have questions about the Biden emphasis on China, which is not a front-burner issue for the Europeans. They largely view NATO as a bulwark against Russia, particularly since Moscow’s annexation of Crimea in 2014 and its intervention in eastern Ukraine, which is not a NATO member but aspires to join.
(AP)
14, April 2021
After Prince Philip: what next for Queen Elizabeth II? 0
Queen Elizabeth II faces the twilight of her record-breaking reign without her most trusted adviser and personal confidant — husband Prince Philip.
But his death last week aged 99 is not expected to change the monarch’s lifetime commitment to duty, as a new chapter beckons for Britain’s most famous family.
The Queen, who turns 95 next week, once described the Duke of Edinburgh as her “strength and stay”, in a rare moment of public candour.
He has been credited with the successful running of “The Firm”, cementing its position in national life, and helping it to weather crises and scandal.
“The Queen, as you would expect, is an incredibly stoic person,” said the couple’s second son, Prince Andrew, who has been under a shadow because of his links to the late Jeffrey Epstein, a convicted sex offender.
“She described (the duke’s death) as having left a huge void in her life,” he told reporters, adding the family was “rallying round to make sure we’re there to support her”.
– Life of service –
A steady stream of close family members have visited the Queen since last week, including her eldest son and heir, Prince Charles, Andrew, and youngest son, Edward.
Edward said his mother was “bearing up”, despite the understandable shock at the loss.
The Times reported on Tuesday that she is currently not being given her daily red boxes of government papers during the two weeks of official royal mourning.
But early signs are the Queen will remain faithful to the commitment she made in a radio address to the Commonwealth as a 21-year-old princess from Cape Town, South Africa, in 1947.
“I declare before you all that my whole life, whether it be long or short, shall be devoted to your service,” she said.
Just a day after her husband’s death was announced, she had an audience with Prime Minister Boris Johnson, according to the Court Circular, which lists royal events and engagements.
On Tuesday, she hosted an event at Windsor Castle, west of London, to mark the retirement of the Lord Chamberlain, the most senior officer in the royal household.
She has links to more than 600 charities, military associations, professional bodies and public service organisations.
– Family support –
Prince Philip was almost ever-present at the Queen’s side since she acceded to the throne in 1952 but had been seen less after retiring from public duties in 2017.
It is expected she will now rely more heavily on Charles, his second wife, Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, as well as second-in-line Prince William and his wife at engagements, according to British media reports.
Charles, now 72, has already taken on more of her duties in recent years, including overseas, in preparation for his long-awaited succession.
He is expected to accompany his mother for the state opening of Parliament on May 11.
Younger royals have also accompanied her at events, including online over videoconference during the coronavirus pandemic.
The Times quoted royal sources as saying she will still carry out solo engagements.
The Queen’s apparent desire to get out and about is in stark contrast to Britain’s last female monarch, Queen Victoria, who wore black for four decades and barely made any public appearances after her husband Albert’s death in 1861.
Her seclusion led her to being called the “widow of Windsor” and increased the popularity of the republican movement.
– Step up –
Public sympathy for the Queen after her husband’s death is high, and she has consistently topped polls as the most popular royal.
Her presence and longevity as Britain’s longest-serving monarch have helped stave off republican sentiment, even as attitudes to the monarchy have changed over the years.
Charles has effectively taken over his father’s role as the most senior royal male, and if he follows in his footsteps, he has a series of pressing issues to deal with.
Andrew’s public reappearance last weekend caused outrage in some quarters, as US prosecutors still want to speak to him about his links to Epstein.
The palace is also dealing with the fall-out of Charles’ youngest son Prince Harry and his wife Meghan’s shock move to the United States last year — and their explosive claims of racism and treatment in the royal family.
Saturday’s funeral will also see Harry and elder brother William reunited, with widely-reported claims of a deep rift between the pair.
The brothers — once close after the death of their mother, princess Diana, in a Paris car crash in 1997 — pointedly issued separate tributes to their grandfather after his passing.
Source: AFP