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Agence France-Presse February 5, 2010 NATO Agrees Steps To Fill Yawning Budget Gap ISTANBUL: NATO defense ministers have agreed a package of measures to fill a gaping budget shortfall of hundreds of millions of euros, alliance Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen announced Feb. 5. "Ministers have agreed a package of measures to ensure that our soldiers get the support they need in the field, and that we can make the other strategic investments we still need," he said at talks in Istanbul, Turkey. "Solidarity in NATO means on the front line, but it also includes on the bottom line," he told the ministers. A NATO official said the budget hole would amount to around 640 million euros ($878 million) this year in the alliance's investment budget. A separate budget funding military operations is unlikely to be greatly effected. To address the problem, the ministers agreed to inject fresh money into the investment budget this year, to reform the budgetary system and to "make savings", she said, without providing details. They also agreed to invest in operations and future strategic priorities. Prior to the talks, a senior U.S. official urged the 28 NATO allies to invest more in missile defense and common projects, like heavy lift helicopters, medial facilities and technology to counter improvised bombs. .... "If you have a choice between not doing something, because you can't afford it, or paying a little and doing it collectively, it makes more sense, particularly in a time of dwindling resources," he told reporters. A NATO official said U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates told the ministers here that "NATO is still using Cold War-era structures, the military structure is too heavy and has to be streamlined." =========================== Stop NATO http://groups.yahoo.com/group/stopnato Blog site: http://rickrozoff.wordpress.com/ To subscribe, send an e-mail to: [email protected] or [email protected] Daily digest option available. ============================== --------------------------- ANTI-NATO INFORMATION LIST --^---------------------------------------------------------------- This email was sent to: [email protected] EASY UNSUBSCRIBE click here: http://topica.com/u/?a84x2u.bNM5nn.YXJjaGl2 Or send an email to: [email protected] For Topica's complete suite of email marketing solutions visit: http://www.topica.com/?p=TEXFOOTER --^----------------------------------------------------------------
