Obama Strengthens Commitment to Europe

President Barack Obama is in Warsaw as an initiative to strengthen military aid to the countries of the eastern flank of NATO after concerns about the actions of Vladimir Putin in Russia – Ukraine border with Poland – country and annexation of Ukrainian region of Crimea.

“I have come here,” Obama said in a press conference, ” to reaffirm the U.S. commitment to Poland’s security.” “Any new Russian provocation will have a new price,” he added, referring to the sanctions that the U.S. and the European Union have imposed on Russia since the crisis erupted in February in Ukraine.

The initiative, which would force the U.S. Congress to provide up to additional one billion dollars  to ” show support for allies who have contributed to the strong and brave Alliance operations in Afghanistan and elsewhere and are now deeply concerned about the Russian occupation and attempted annexation of the Crimea, and other provocative actions in Ukraine,”according to a statement from the White House.

Warsaw is the first leg of a tour that will take Obama to Brussels and France, and marks the return of Europe as a major concern in the U.S., after years of disinterest in this country attempted a turn towards Asia. The rotation pivot Asian lingo in Washington has not been parked, insists the White House, but after the actions of Russian President Putin, in Ukraine the Old Continent again occupies the center of priorities.

In a brief statement after landing in the Polish capital, Obama said that security in Europe is “the foundation ” of U.S. security. “It is a particularly important commitment at this time,” he added.

Obama met in Warsaw with Polish President Bronislaw Komorowski and Prime Minister Donald Tusk. The U.S. initiative is ” a good response, important for the region and not only for Poland,” Komorowski said at the press conference. Polish President announced a proposal to increase the defense budget of the country.

In the same press conference, Obama urged Western countries to increase NATO defense budgets. “We have seen a decline in spending,” he said. ” This has to change.”

Obama participates in the evening on Tuesday at a summit with heads of State and Government of the countries of the region. On Wednesday plans to meet with Petro Poroshenko, elected president of Ukraine in the May 25 elections. The visit coincides with the 25th. Anniversary of the first partially democratic elections in Poland which gave victory to the Solidarity movement and accelerated the end of Soviet rule in Central and Eastern Europe. The U.S. president, sometimes accused of neglecting the support for human rights in favor of realpolitik, a speech on the anniversary.

Obama ‘s military initiative envisages an increase in exercise, training, equipment and the presence of Americans in the countries of Central and Eastern Europe. It also reinforces the presence of the Navy, the U.S. Navy in the Black and Baltic seas. E includes the promise of greater cooperation and a commitment to help improve the defense of Ukraine, Georgia and Moldova, countries that do not belong to NATO and that Moscow considers in its sphere of influence.

The White House believes there is room for hope in Ukraine. The U.S. president held at the press conference that Russia has withdrawn troops deployed near the border with Ukraine. Now, he continued, Putin should ” exert influence ” pro-Russian militia in southern and eastern Ukraine to cease violence, recognize the outcome of the Ukrainian elections and dialogue with the government of Kiev. Whatever happens, “it’s fair to say that will require time to rebuild trust,” Obama said.

The NATO treaty forces U.S. in the defense of its members, including Poland and the Baltic countries – to a possible Russian attack, but the Allied umbrella does not include Ukraine, which is not a member of the organization.

Obama ‘s relations with the countries of Central and Eastern Europe have been complicated. After the close alliance that led to the Iraq war between U.S. of George W. Bush and the “new Europe “, Obama chose a more detached attitude. Announced a reset- or – reset of relations with Russia and renounced the missile shield project in this region that Bush had urged.

The crisis in Ukraine has changed everything. The idea that, over two decades after the end of the Cold War, the U.S. could ignore Europe which still has 67,000 military – to focus on Middle East and Asia, has been archived. Obama has returned. And Poland is a key country in the U.S. strategy to contain Putin.

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Posted by Jamshed Sindhu on Jun 4 2014. Filed under Europe. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.