[A-List] The end of NATO?

["Michael Keaney" <michael.keaney@xxxxxx>]

US-European capability gap grows
By Judy Dempsey in Prague
Financial Times: November 21 2002

vWhen Nato leaders meet on Thursday in Prague to welcome seven new countries
into the US-led alliance, they will need no reminding that if the
organisation is to have any future military role, the Europeans will have to
improve their capabilities.

Joseph Ralston, Nato's outgoing US commander, has no illusions over the
long-term consequences of this growing gap between the US and its Europeans
allies when it comes to technology and spending.

He said the longer the capabilities gap widens, the less likely allies will
be capable of interoperability - the ability to train together and fight
together. "Nato forces may be less able to work together in future combined
operations," he added.

At present, the US provides 100 per cent of Nato's jamming capability (for
some communications), 90 per cent of the air-to-ground surveillance and
reconnaissance and almost 80 per cent of the air refuelling tankers
necessary to conduct operations.

"Let me emphasise just how important that last point of air refuelling is,"
Mr Ralston told defence experts at a recent conference in Brussels.

During the first few months of the war in Afghanistan, "virtually every
operational mission over Afghanistan, be it Air Force or Navy fighter, or a
long-range bomber, was refueled by an Air Force tanker. In order to achieve
this vital capability, the US Air Force operates a fleet of 550 tankers."
That, added Mr Ralston, "is almost eight times the number available to Nato
from the other allies."

As for the 180 intercontinental bombers carrying the Nato insignia, they are
also exclusively American, all equipped with the latest generation of
precision weapons, and some with cruise missiles.

Another widening gap between the Europeans and the US is strategic airlift -
the wide-bodied planes used to transport troops, armored vehicle carriers
and humanitarian assistance.

The US has 250 long-range transport planes. "The Europeans have 11," said
Lord Robertson, Nato secretary general. "It is hopeless. What do you do?
Take the train. Or call for a 53 bus?"

German soldiers did take the train when it decided earlier this year to send
its troops to Afghanistan. They waited for days in Turkey because of poor
weather. The government then decided to go to the commercial market to lease
transport planes. It ended up paying $245,000 per sortie. It needed 160
sorties.

The Europeans keep repeating they have plans to overcome the gap on
strategic airlift by modernising the fleet with the A400m carrier. But
diplomats say political will is lacking. Defence ministers are fighting for
funds to place orders while the finance ministers are working within
increasingly tighter budgets. Despite this, Nato's European allies insist
they can make up for these shortfalls for strategic airlift by leasing them
commercially.

Lord Robertson says they are deceiving themselves if they think they can
rely on leasing until the A400m come on stream by the end of the decade. He
said he recently telephoned around to see how many Antonovs - the Russian
air transport carriers - were available. "Zero", said Lord Robertson. "They
were all tied up, transshipping electronic toys. They are simply not
available. And the price for them goes up and down, depending on a crisis."