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NATO Mulls EU Defense Plans

EU defense ministers met in Brussels last week to sell a European military planning unit independent of NATO to a skeptical United States. While Washington remained tight-lipped, Deutsche Welle readers had much to say.

Donald Rumsfeld's views were uncharacteristically kept in check.Image: AP

It is time now for Europe to become independent and not a puppet of the imperial designs of some people in Washington. Nato is just the alliance the USA needs to control EU nations militarily. It is a shame that EU nations, fifty years after WWII still have in their territories hundreds of thousands of US troops and lots of military bases. What do you think of Germany and France having 10,000 troops stationed near Washington DC? I would like to see that. The US troops were stationed in Europe because of the war, created by dangerous and unstable countries. As dangerous as the USA has become since then.

-- Antonio Peramo, Spain.

The EU Military Force is needed to supply a counterweight to the US in the world. NATO is simply a puppet of the US. Unless the EU takes a bold initiative here the US will cement Pax America around the globe.

-- Robert F. Scheyder, Germany.


I think that it does appear that NATO has been seriously weakened. I believe that is was the Bush administration who dealt it the most serious blow, however, by its insistence on its own plans regarding Iraq and the Middle East. The confidence, the trust implicit in partnership, has been severely violated. It's remarkable, therefore, that the Bush administration shows so much anger about the Euro defense plans. Another facet of the widening division is the success that the militant Zionist lobby in the States is having in isolating the USA from its former allies.

-- Dominique Amarante, country not supplied.

I think it is a great idea for the EU. Maybe it will hasten the day that the US can get the monetary support off the US tax payers back and have the Ride Free EUer's assume some responsibily other than the feeble monies they appropriate from their GNP's. I'm for the US pulling out of NATO now, not in a few years. The EU will, as is their habit, keep the US as long as it takes to reach their objectives. The EU is the Trojan Horse. US out of NATO.

-- Richard Ross, USA.