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SATURDAY 20 JUNE 2015
Sorry for Russian propaganda
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am very sorry, that they made such a movie, it is a shame as it was a shame what happened in 1968. That August day I was in Crimea, nobody was smiling and happy about it. Everybody talked or was silent. Now Russian propaganda has spread this horror all over the world, said Russian professor of history Andrey Zubov. The first debate under the GLOBSEC banner in Banská Bystrica could not have started without a question about the recent Russian propagandistic documentary about the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia. It was decribed as prevention and a brother´s help against a NATO sponsored fascist coup. Why is this kind of propaganda still possible 25 years after the collapse of the Iron Curtain? „Communism left bigger and deeper scars than Nazism. The main problem of Russia today is what you already did in 90s: we have to seperate ourselves from Soviet ideology,” says Zubov. The economy in his opinion should be in second place after people. There is no doubt that the 21st August 1968 was a clear occupation. “But Russian historians, not even the young ones have realized this. In Russia to be unbiased is not standard,” commented Stanislav Mičev, Director General of Museum of the Slovak National Uprising. During the debate the panelists proposed broadcasting the documentary in prime time on TV. “It should be done with commentaries from our historians to analyze the Russian interpration of this terrible event,” said Petr Kolář, Senior Advisor of Squire Patton Boggs. He assumes that Russian propaganda aims at our lack of knowledge, trying to spread disinformation. „The most effective way is relativization and Putin needs Trojan horses for this,“ says Kolář. The worst is the relativization of the war in Ukraine, he added. „There is a part of Russia which is against the occupation of Crimea and Donbas, and who do not like Putin´s policy. This is not Russian politics but Kremlin policy,“ said Professor Zubov who was expelled from Moscow State University because of his criticism of the annexation of Crimea. He does not plan to emmigrate from Russia. „I have to be with my nation, my students.“ ERIKA MESÍKOVÁ Slovak Atlantic Commission
GLOBSEC DAILY
Panelists discussed goals for NATO before its summit in Warsaw. Audience did not believe all NATO countries would help each other in case of external aggression
Surprising poll in NATO Warsaw panel
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Vershbow: Russia behaves aggresively
hat will be the goals for NATO before its next summit in Warsaw? Should we speak with Russia? Those were two of many topics that were discussed by panelists of the discussion ‚From Wales to Warsaw: Collectively Defending the Alliance‘ yesterday at GLOBSEC Conference in Bratislava. Deputy Secretary-General of NATO Alexander Vershbow, Under-Secretary of State in the Ministry of National Defence of Poland Maciej Jankowski, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Romania Bogdan Aurescu and Chairman of the Munich Security Conference Wolfgang Ischinger took part in the discussion which was led by Brooks Tigner, EU and NATO correspondent for Jane´s Defense Weekly.
NEW REALITY FOR NATO „Russia’s behaviour has created a new strategic reality for NATO. After 25 years of focusing on out-of-area crisis management, we now must re-emphasize our original mission of collective defence,“ said Mr. Vershbow. That is the reason why NATO created Readiness Action Plan and Very High Readiness or so called Spearhead Force which is now „operational and able to be deployed within a matter of days“. „We are more than doubling the size of the NATO Response Force, to provide reinforcements for the Spearhead should it be needed,“ added Mr. Vershbow. „We will soon open a series of command-and-control posts across our Eastern Allies, to facilitate the rapid deployment of NATO reinforcements and coordinate training and exercises.“ Mr. Vershbow said that Spearhead Force is just the beginning. NATO should also „better anticipate hybrid threats“.
DISCUSSION WITH RUSSIANS Poland will host NATO summit in 2016 in Warsaw. Poland is among countries that take the threat of Russia very seriously and call for more western soldiers on its soil. „Poland is one of the nations of these Spearhead forces,“ added Maciej Jankowski from Polish Ministry of Defense. Key priorities of the Warsaw summit include reform of NATO quick response forces, which shouldn´t be just a temporary measure, said Jankowski. There was also discussion about how to talk with Russia. NATO-Russia council set up in
A soldier stands in front of a war ship as he participates in a massive amphibious landing operation during NATO sea exercises BALTOPS 2015 in Ustka, Poland. FOTO - TASR/AP
We are more than doubling the size of the NATO Response Force, to provide reinforcements for the Spearhead should it be needed. Alexander Vershbow, Deputy Secretary General NATO
2002 was suspended in April 2014 after the annexation of Crimea. „We are still able to talk to Russia. The Secretary General met Mr. Lavrov recently,“ said Mr. Vershbow. But added, that NATO doesn´t see that Russia even wants to talk. „Russia is rejecting the rules. Russia is even pretending that there are no Russian soldiers in Ukraine,“ said Vershbow. Wolfgang Ischinger, German dipomat, former German ambassador to the United States and current Chairman of the Munich Security Conference said, that we are already talking with Russia, for instance on the level of negotiations with Iran. „I see no reasons why NATO couldn´t approach Russia,“ said German diplomat. He also said that he would not have canceled the G8 meeting last June as a reaction to Russian occupation of Crimea. „Leaders of the G8 should have gone to Sochi, but should have told Russia there is only one topic: Russian forces in Crimea,“ said Ischinger.
There were two interactive polls during the panel. The audience could give its opinion through their smartphones about specific questions. The first question produced very surprising results.
SURPRISING POLL Are NATO allies really willing to use force to defend one another? Around 24 percent of paritcipants in the audience said yes, if that would be direct aggression, not a cyber attack. 43 percent voted probably - it would take a while to come up with a firm position. Only 4 percent believe that countries would help each other without delay and under any circumstances. „Its a bit disconcerning,“ said Mr. Vershbow about the results of the poll which surprised many in the room.
TOMÁŠ VASILKO reporter, Denník N
The United States is planning to send heavy weapons like tanks to NATO member states in Eastern Europe. Did they discuss this with NATO? They briefed NATO but the official decision is still being finalised. The talks are only about equipment, not troops. They are going to preposition in Europe some significant number of tanks and other armored vehicles as a way to support both training and excercises which we are doing on a very continuous basis now. But also to make it easy to actually reinforce in the event of a crises, because some of the equipement will already be there. Was there any discussion about doing it under the umbrella of NATO? The normal way it works in NATO is this: The actual placement of equipment and troops is done on a bilateral basis but those forces and equipment are made available to NATO whenever NATO needs it. Are there any members in NATO which disagree with this decision? I have not heard any criticism. This is a response to general concerns that we need to strengthen a capacity to defend every ally. Clearly countries in the east are feelling a bit more exposed after what happened in Ukraine and when Russia is conducting much bigger exercises on a continuing basis without any notification. Just in December they had between 80- and 100-thousand troops and naval forces excercising. Russia said that sending heavy weapons to eastern countries is the most aggresive US act since the Cold War. What would be your answer? Everything we are doing is defensive and is a response to what the Russians are doing. If you want to talk about aggression how about annexing part of Ukrainian territory. How about actively promoting aggression and insurrection in Eastern Ukraine. That is aggression. TOMÁŠ VASILKO
SATURDAY 20 JUNE 2015
GLOBSEC DAILY
www.dennikn.sk
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BEST QUOTES
Watching Russian TVs is like watching news from a different planet. Alexander Vershbow Deputy Secretary-General of NATO
I must say I am very impressed with how @GLOBSEC is organised. We will have to put in more effort. Wolfgang Ischinger
Chairman of Munich Security Conference
FOTO - TASR
Ján Kubiš Special Representative of the UN for Iraq
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nly those who are affected by it can win the war against ISIS, that means the mobilization of the Sunni people and tribes is necessary. They should realize that ISIS does not represent their interests neither in a long term nor short term horizon. Naturally, the second step is to take all measures possible to ensure that this conglomerate of terrorists will not be able to gain any financial support or fighters, and we need to isolate them as deeply as we can. To use all possible means of pressure including military, political, economical and the like as well as sanctions, which should be used far more steadily against the violators, not only directly against ISIS, but also the channels where they gain finances and are able to export materials. Andrey Zubov Russian Professor of History
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f course we can speak about army, weapons and struggle in military terms, but military terms are never effective, as long as the main problems of religion and the never-ending list of people who join ISIS movement are not solved. It is necessary to understand that they join this movement not because of social, not because of polical, not because of ethnic issues, but because of personal religious problems. We in Europe give answers and produce resistance to this movement in all aspects, except this one. We need to speak with them in their language,
We ask experts and politicians what needs to be done to fight jihadism which is as dangerous as never before
Big challenge, big question: How to defeat ISIS? and the language of religion is very difficult, but it is necessary. I think this is the only way to solve the problem of ISIS. František Šebej Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee of Slovak Parliament
We were succesful with the Kurdish. The Kurds are doing well. But now, the only other group, that is kind of effective against ISIS, are not our allies. Shia supported by Iran. Do we really want to ally with them to defeat ISIS and replace one problem with another problem? Jonathan Paris Geopolitical Information Service
Among the members of ISIS there are many people from European Muslim communities, not only men but also women, and it is a big number. Basically there are people who were radicalised here in Europe, in mosques, on the internet and so on. So when we talk about how to defeat the Islamic state, it is not enough to discuss what to do with it in Syria or Iraq, but it is important to ask how to deal with at our home, in Europe. Michael Chertoff Former U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security
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e have to do two things. We have to defeat them on the battlefield and demonstrate to the world that they
are losing. I think we also have to counter their ideology. And that means leaders of Muslim communities need to step up and publically explain that ISIS is not really a Muslim ideology. So there has to be military efforts, but there also has to be a direct way to explain to the people that their ideology is misleading. Anton La Guardia Deputy Foreign Editor, The Economist
It will take more commitment to the troops. We have to break that image that ISIS cannot be beaten. We have to put more resources on them, more trainers, more special forces embedded with Iraqi forces, some air controllers. Number two is to fix the politics of the region. You need internal balance in Iraq and a peace agreement in Syria, and beyond that to resolve Saudi-Iranian relations and tensions between the Shia and Sunni peoples.
Miroslav Lajčák Slovak Foreign Minister
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package of measures, which has to be social, economic and political. To stop them only militarily will not solve the problem. The basic question is why do they have such big support that after every lost fighter they can announce a new one. For me it is shocking that people born here in Europe who know prosperity and democracy can so easily abandon everything. Karel Schwarzenberg Former Czech Foreign Minister
The borders set by the English and Frech after the WWI have disappeared and something completely new is being created. The map of the Middle East will look very different soon. It is unbelievable that the borders were drawn by someone sitting in London without even looking at the tribal and religious issues. We can not solve this violently.
We must be uncompromising about the attempts to redraw Europe’s borders by force. We are clear: Crimea and Donbas are part of the territory of Ukraine. David Cameron British Prime Minister
We want to see Greece staying in the Eurozone. But not at all cost and Slovakia is ready for Grexit. Robert Fico Slovak Prime Minister
Russia is a threat not because it‘s powerful but because it‘s not. George Friedman Stratfor
Nations are defined by borders, we have to defend the borders. The fence is just a technical issue. To defend the country is an obligation. I don‘t believe in the European solution. Viktor Orbán Hungarian Prime Minister
Russia losing prospects for development, in comparison to South East Asia, due to competition. Evgeny Nadorshin Advisor to the Minister for Economic Development of the Russian Federation
Without energy security we can not speak about security at all. Tomasz Siemoniak Polish Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defence