U.S. European Command boss Gen. Philip Breedlove is pressing the Pentagon for more Navy and intelligence gathering assets in Europe, where a Russian buildup in the Mediterranean and Black Sea represents a growing security challenge.No, it isn't.
"There is a requirement for more," Breedlove said at a Pentagon news briefing Friday. "And again, the processes for how we allocate those forces are going on in this building right now and that is part of the reason I am home, to advocate for what I think is an increased need to address the Russian navy."
With Russia's intervention in Ukraine last year, unrest along ally Turkey's southern border with Syria and concerns about a more active Russian navy in the eastern Mediterranean, security challenges are coming from multiple fronts for EUCOM and the U.S.-led NATO alliance.
"Europe isn't what it was 19 months ago or even six months ago," Breedlove said.
We need a bigger Navy. The cupboard is getting pretty thin. It's big world and you need lots of ships to cover it.
272 "deployable battle force ships", no matter how capable, means choices of what areas not to cover are being made. Thus, no U.S. aircraft carrier in the Arabian Gulf.
Yes, and of course we can't just suddenly build more ships. In fact, thanks to a cretinous policy vis a vis the Spruance class, we can't even demothball and activate any that would be effectual. Much less man them, even if we could. We are a maritime nation, and we are using resources which should be devoted to critical sea power assets to buy votes through welfare. Just criminally stupid at every level.
ReplyDeleteWe really need to send our new USS Pueblo and USS Liberty replacement spyships to EUCOM to spy on Russians? Srsly? Would the good general be interested in a half dozen shiny new LCS? They could be staked out in the Russian's path and serve as trip wires although we may only learn their fate from the smoke of their fiery pyres rather than from their coastal surveillance and realtime satellite comms capability. They aren't really suitable for anything else.
ReplyDeleteThe USN's time in the role of serving as NATO's navy is passed and opening. To be callously honest, I'm surprised NAVEUR and EUCOM aren't 'leading' the EU's naval efforts to 'assist' the migration problem facing Europe.