NATO

After 43 Years, France to Rejoin NATO as Full Member - Edward Cody, Washington Post

President Charles de Gaulle infuriated the United States when he suddenly pulled France out of NATO's military command in 1966, arguing he had to preserve French independence in world affairs.

Forty-three years later, President Nicolas Sarkozy announced Wednesday, France has decided to return as a full-fledged member of the 26-nation military pact, the North Atlantic Alliance, which came together under US leadership at the start of the Cold War in 1949 and has served as the basis for US-European security relations since.

More at The Washington Post and:

France Will Take Full NATO Membership Again - New York Times
Sarkozy: French to Return to NATO - Daily Telegraph
France Set to Rejoin NATO Command After 43 Years - Toronto Star
France to Rejoin NATO Military Command - Associated Press

NATO’s Mission - New York Times editorial

NATO will be marking its 60th anniversary with a summit in early April, which will be hosted by France and Germany. Much of the preparatory hoopla has been celebratory, in large part because an eight-year chill in trans-Atlantic relations is seen as drawing to an end. President Obama is still soaring on European popularity charts, and Europe’s current leaders are a pro-American bunch. France’s president, Nicolas Sarkozy, has also decided to lead his country back into full NATO membership, putting to rest the Gaullists’ longstanding ambition to be a counterweight to Washington.

All that has inspired hopes of shaping a meaningful mission for the alliance after 20 years of post-cold-war drift. For that to happen, NATO must succeed in Afghanistan. Right now, it is frighteningly close to failing.

More at The New York Times.

NATO

Croatia and Albania to Join NATO - Daily Telegraph

NATO

NATO States to Mark 60th Anniversary - Henry Chu, Los Angeles Times

After 60 years of a solid but sometimes stormy marriage, the countries of the world's most powerful military alliance plan to renew their vows of mutual support and protection this weekend. But don't expect a second honeymoon.

As it prepares to enter its seventh decade, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization is riven by profound disagreements over its role in a world that combines new threats with the specter of an old one.

Many critics see an alliance adrift, one that is fighting an increasingly unpopular war in Afghanistan while neglecting challenges closer to home, such as a newly resurgent Russia. But even as some of the 26 members -- rising to 28 as of this week -- advocate going "back to basics," others insist that to remain relevant in the 21st century, NATO must branch out to combat new threats to transatlantic security, from climate change to the vulnerability of cyberspace.

If NATO cannot heal its internal rifts, it risks the obsolescence of a storied alliance that guaranteed free Europe's security and faced down the Soviet Union without firing a shot.

More at The Los Angeles Times and:

NATO Prepares for Historic Anniversary, Summit - AFPS
NATO Turns 60, Leaders Gather for Summit, Celebration - Washington Post
Strasbourg Armors Up for NATO Summit - United Press International
French NATO Return to Benefit EU Defense? - United Press International
NATO Struggles with Choice of New Leader - The Times
NATO's 60th a Time for Protest - Washington Times
NATO at 60: Ready for a New Role - Christian Science Monitor opinion
If NATO Didn't Exist We'd Have to Invent It - Wall Street Journal opinion
Time to Reinvent NATO - Washington Times opinion

Putin: NATO War Games in Georgia Hurt US-Russian Ties - Voice of America. Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin says NATO war games in Georgia are hurting Washington's efforts to rebuild diplomatic ties with Moscow. In an interview with Japanese media and released Sunday by the Kremlin, Mr. Putin said the NATO maneuvers are pointing diplomacy "in the other direction." He accused NATO of seeking to prop up Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili, who has been under pressure by the opposition in Georgia to resign.