Orlando, February 18, 2010—The “embedded partnership” strategy now being used by NATO’s International Security Assistance Force is clearly paying dividends, said Army Maj. Gen. Curtis Scaparrotti, head of Combined Joint Task Force 82, headquartered at Bagram Air Base, speaking at AFA’s Air Warfare Symposium. Scaparrotti said the cooperation has allowed his Regional Command East, which encompasses roughly a quarter of Afghanistan, to get a handle on insurgent activity in some significant zones. He noted, too, that civilians from areas around the now-Taliban-free zones want the same security. They now offer their support in driving out the Taliban, which helps spread security much like an expanding inkblot. Continue
The U.S. supports “a stronger and more capable” European defense, Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin III said during an Oct. 22 press conference in Brussels—but that defense should not duplicate the functions and capabilities of the NATO alliance.