Visit our website: HTTP://WWW.STOPNATO.ORG.UK --------------------------------------------- [Chancellor of a reunified, remilitarized German occupies third former European entity. Hitler and Ribbentrop didn't get to that point until almost eight years in power, with the invasion of Greece in 1940. Good job, Gerhard and Joschka, Frederick the Great and Bismarck, not to mention later examples, would be proud of you. When do you expect to be in Moscow?] Monday August 27, 10:24 PM Schroeder expected to win parliamentary approval for NATO deployment BERLIN, Aug 27 (AFP) - The executive committees of both parties in German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder's centre-left government said on Monday they would back the deployment of German soldiers for NATO's peacekeeping mission in Macedonia, all but assuring a positive parliamentary vote on Wednesday. The two committees made the announcements after meetings in Berlin Monday, despite grumbling from leftists in the coalition which had left German participation in the operation called Essential Harvest in doubt. Some 30 left-wing members of Schroeder's Social Democrats (SPD) and the formerly pacifist Greens have objected to German participation in the NATO action to disarm ethnic Albanian guerrillas as too risky, both for the soldiers and for Germany if the mission leads to a long-term commitment. The German deployment proposal, to be voted on in parliament Wednesday, calls for up to 500 German soldiers to join the NATO force which on Monday began collecting weapons surrendered by ethnic Albanian rebels. SPD member Harald Friese had told the Frankfurter Allgemeine newspaper on Sunday: "The risk of the NATO mission cannot be calculated and therefore is not responsible." Such fears were underscored Monday when NATO said a British soldier serving in Macedonia had been killed Sunday by a piece of concrete thrown through the window of his vehicle near the capital, Skopje. German soldiers expected to be sent to Macedonia will received special defence training and equipment to ensure their safety, a defence ministry spokesman said Monday. He said that they would be required to wear bullet-proof vests and steel helmets while outside barracks. Vehicles would also only be allowed to travel in convoy. The overall NATO force was expected to number 5,000 troops from a dozen alliance members. Schroeder's SPD-Greens coalition has a majority of only 16 in the 666-seat lower house, the Bundestag, and so would need support from the opposition if it lost too many votes from his side. The conservative opposition has echoed the concerns expressed by Friese and said that the German army, already burdened by government austerity programs and peacekeeping missions in both Bosnia and Kosovo, cannot afford to deploy in Macedonia. But Schroeder said last week that the armed forces would receive an extra 120 million marks (60 million euros, 55 million dollars) for the mission, plus a monthly 15 million marks out of general federal funds and not the defense ministry budget. Angela Merkel, leader of the main conservative party, the Christian Democrats (CDU), told ZDF television over the weekend that members of her party were free to vote as they wished on Wednesday and would not be pressured to reject the measure. She had previously opposed Germany sending troops, saying the current defense budget was too small to fund such a mission. Schroeder has also apparently won support from the opposition Free Democrats (FDP) for the deployment, with FDP chairman Guido Westerwelle backing it. Winning over the FDP could signal a change in the political landscape, as Schroeder could turn to this liberal party to form a new coalition after general elections next year, if the Greens either fail to win enough votes or continue to cause him problems in carrying out his policies. Schroeder's cabinet approved on Thursday the deployment plan, which would put the German contingent under French command and have a 30-day mandate. Schroeder said the aim of the NATO operation was to make it possible for different ethnic groups in Macedonia to live together, as the alternative is civil war, and that Germany could not leave such an important task to its allied partners alone. Defense Minister Rudolf Scharping said last week that he did not expect the mission to last longer than 30 days, "But I cannot rule that out." The German public is split over sending troops to Macedonia, according to a poll published Saturday by Bild newspaper. The poll showed 49 per cent backed the German army's involvement in Operation Essential Harvest, with 46 per cent opposed. __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Make international calls for as low as $.04/minute with Yahoo! Messenger http://phonecard.yahoo.com/ ------------------------------------------------- This Discussion List is the follow-up for the old stopnato @listbot.com that has been shut down ==^================================================================ EASY UNSUBSCRIBE click here: http://topica.com/u/?a84x2u.a9spWA Or send an email To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] This email was sent to: archive@jab.org T O P I C A -- Register now to manage your mail! http://www.topica.com/partner/tag02/register ==^================================================================
