France resists more joint funding of 'brain dead' NATO

Health

France resists more joint funding of ‘brain dead’ NATO

Published

3 years ago

May 29, 2021

Harry Miller

A $20 billion plan to give NATO more flexibility in facing military threats, climate change and China’s rise has hit firm resistance from France, which fears the move could undermine its defence priorities, four diplomats and a French defence source said.

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg proposed in February that allies put more money directly into existing, albeit small common budgets, rather than rely on the current system that each government pays for its own military operations.

That was a response to long-standing tensions with the United States which says European allies do not contribute enough to their own defence. A deal at a June 14 summit with U.S. President Joe Biden would likely shore up transatlantic unity, two of the four diplomats who spoke to Reuters said.

The proposal also seeks to heed French President Emmanuel Macron’s 2019 warning that NATO was “brain dead” because the alliance, formed in 1949 to contain a military threat from the Soviet Union, lacked a clear political strategy in the post-Cold War, multipolar world.

But France believes the idea – which the diplomats said was to put some $20 billion into common budgets over 10 years – is unlikely to benefit French military priorities and risks diverting attention and resources away from building up weak defence capabilities among European Union member states.

Most of them are also part of NATO.

“If the idea is to brutally increase the contribution of countries to common budgets and change the philosophy of NATO, moving from national responsibility to the dilution of responsibility, France’s response will be clearly no,” a French armed forces ministry source told Reuters.

The EU has been working since December 2017 to develop more firepower independently of the United States, led by France, the EU’s remaining major military power after Britain left the bloc.

“For us, it is not an issue of NATO versus Europe but NATO versus the national defence of each member state,” the French armed forces ministry source said.

The source said Paris was still open to hearing counter arguments and details, however. France already meets NATO’s target to spend 2% of economic output on defence.

One of the four diplomats said French Armed Forces Minister Florence Parly was upset by Stoltenberg’s decision to go public in February with the outline of his proposal. Stoltenberg met Macron in Paris on May 21, praising the French president for France’s “significant defence investment”.

A NATO official told Reuters that pre-summit negotiations were constructive and that NATO foreign and defence ministers would discuss the proposal, part of Stoltenberg’s NATO 2030 reform package, when they convene on June 1.

MORE AMBITION

Germany and other European allies, as well as Canada, also want to know what any extra money would be spent on before they loosen their purse strings. The summit with Biden may only agree to carry out an analysis of common funding, the diplomats said.

“Some Europeans are asking: do we build up NATO, or do we develop the EU’s defence capacity to complement NATO?” said a senior NATO diplomat. “Each euro can only be spent once.”

Stoltenberg, a former Norwegian prime minister, suggested that allies fund collectively more of their deterrent operations on allied territory, rather than the current system that a single ally bears all the costs of a deployment.

Allies could invest in upgrading allied bases to adapt to climate change, protecting telecoms and computer networks against cyber attackers and in space. Stoltenberg said in February: “If we want to do more, we also need more resources.”

NATO common-funded budgets amount to 0.3% of total allied defence spending, or some $2.5 billion, to run NATO commands and military infrastructure. That figure is lower than NATO’s historical average of about 0.5%, the diplomats said.

(Writing by Robin Emmott; Editing by Mark Heinrich)

Health

April 22nd to 30th is Immunization Awareness Week – Oldies 107.7

Published

5 hours ago

April 24, 2024

Harry Miller

<!–April 22nd to 30th is Immunization Awareness Week | Oldies 107.7

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Health

AHS confirms case of measles in Edmonton – CityNews Edmonton

Published

6 hours ago

April 24, 2024

Harry Miller

Alberta Health Services (AHS) has confirmed a case of measles in Edmonton, and is advising the public that the individual was out in public while infectious.

Measles is an extremely contagious disease that is spread easily through the air, and can only be prevented through immunization.

AHS says individuals who were in the following locations during the specified dates and times, may have been exposed to measles.

April 16
- Edmonton International Airport, international arrivals and baggage claim area — between 3:20 p.m. and 6 p.m.
April 20
- Stollery Children’s Hospital Emergency Department — between 5 a.m. to 3 p.m.
April 22
- 66^th Medical Clinic (13635 66 St NW Edmonton) — between 12:15 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.
- Pharmacy 66 (13637 66 St NW Edmonton) — between 12:15 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.
April 23
- Stollery Children’s Hospital Emergency Department — between 4:40 a.m. to 9:33 a.m.

AHS says anyone who attended those locations during those times is at risk of developing measles if they’ve not had two documented doses of measles-containing vaccine.

Those who have not had two doses, who are pregnant, under one year of age, or have a weakened immune system are at greatest risk of getting measles and should contact Health Link at 1-877-720-0707.

Symptoms

Symptoms of measles include a fever of 38.3° C or higher, cough, runny nose, and/or red eyes, a red blotchy rash that appears three to seven days after fever starts, beginning behind the ears and on the face and spreading down the body and then to the arms and legs.

If you have any of these symptoms stay home and call Health Link.

In Alberta, measles vaccine is offered, free of charge, through Alberta’s publicly funded immunization program. Children in Alberta typically receive their first dose of measles vaccine at 12 months of age, and their second dose at 18 months of age.

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U.S. tightens rules for dairy cows a day after bird flu virus fragments found in pasteurized milk samples – Toronto Star

Published

7 hours ago

April 24, 2024

Harry Miller

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Infected cows were already prohibited from being transported out of state, but that was based on the physical characteristics of the milk, which looks curdled when a cow is infected, or a cow has decreased lactation or low appetite, both symptoms of infection.

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