Police officers near the National Stadium on the eve of the Nato summit in Warsaw on July 7, 2016. Pawel Supernak / EPA
Police officers near the National Stadium on the eve of the Nato summit in Warsaw on July 7, 2016. Pawel Supernak / EPA

The world is a more dangerous place, says head of Nato



WARSAW // On the eve of the Nato summit in Poland, the secretary general declared the alliance was at “a defining moment for our security” but would meet it head on.

“The world is a more dangerous place than just few years ago,” said Jens Stoltenberg. “Nato is responding with speed and with determination. We will take new, major steps to ensure Nato member nations’ security and help foster stability in the Middle East and North Africa.”

The two-day summit starts on Friday and the significance of the venue, — Warsaw, the city which lent its name to the Cold War defence bloc led by the Soviet Union — is not lost on anyone, for another topic dominating the agenda is how Nato deals with an emboldened Russia and its aggression in eastern Ukraine, which has already cost more than 9,000 lives and soured relations between the West and Moscow.

Mr Stoltenberg’s pre-summit press conference was a joint affair with Polish president Andrzej Duda.

“It is fitting that we meet in Warsaw, a city that knows the pain of conflict and the value of security,” said Mr Stoltenberg in a reference to Poland’s tumultuous history.

In her eve of summit address, German chancellor Angela Merkel positioned herself as intermediary by offering Moscow “an outstretched hand for dialogue.” However Russia says it is Nato that risks broadening the conflict in Europe if it takes over control a US missile defence shield which Moscow says could be aimed at Russia.

Poland joined Nato 17 years ago — much to Russia’s consternation — but the fact that Nato has never positioned bases or significant troop numbers on Polish soil has been a cause for concern. The anxiety increased when Russia annexed the Crimean peninsula from eastern Ukraine in 2014 and began supporting Russian-speaking east Ukrainian separatists. Poland and other newer Nato members, the ex-Soviet republics Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, were worried that they might be next.

So this summit marks a turning point for Poland, not only because it is prestigious but, more importantly, because the 28-member alliance will finalise plans to deploy four reinforced multinational battalions, to Poland and the Baltic states. The development builds on the previous summit, in Wales in 2014, where Nato decided to create a spearhead force that could move quickly into the region in case of an attack.

“We are becoming a full member of Nato. Not only a political one, but one that we Poles have waited 70 years to be. We will be fully protected by a joint force, ” said Polish defence minister Antoni Macierewicz, whose own father was almost certainly murdered on the orders of Moscow in 1949, when the minister was only a year old. “ [Russian president] Vladimir Putin has been threatening us for a long time. It is a fact that the Russian Federation has an aggressive character. It’s not only propaganda, but a fact, and that’s why we have decided to take steps.”

For their part, the Russians say that they feel provoked by a build-up of Nato activity and forces so close to Russian territory.

Officials from Georgia are also attending the summit seeking assurances that the alliance will honour the promise made in 2008 to invite the former Soviet republic to join. Georgians felt particularly snubbed when Nato invited the tiny Balkan country of Montenegro to join and are threatening to turn back to their historical overlords, Russia. However, some Nato members are wary of angering the Kremlin and Russia would certainly not welcome such a near neighbour joining an alliance that was once an enemy. But in a pre-summit visit to the Georgian capital, Tbilisi, US secretary of state John Kerry urged Georgia to be patient.

* Associated Press

2025 Fifa Club World Cup groups

Group A: Palmeiras, Porto, Al Ahly, Inter Miami.

Group B: Paris Saint-Germain, Atletico Madrid, Botafogo, Seattle.

Group C: Bayern Munich, Auckland City, Boca Juniors, Benfica.

Group D: Flamengo, ES Tunis, Chelsea, Leon.

Group E: River Plate, Urawa, Monterrey, Inter Milan.

Group F: Fluminense, Borussia Dortmund, Ulsan, Mamelodi Sundowns.

Group G: Manchester City, Wydad, Al Ain, Juventus.

Group H: Real Madrid, Al Hilal, Pachuca, Salzburg.

Your Guide to the Home
  • Level 1 has a valet service if you choose not to park in the basement level. This level houses all the kitchenware, including covetable brand French Bull, along with a wide array of outdoor furnishings, lamps and lighting solutions, textiles like curtains, towels, cushions and bedding, and plenty of other home accessories.
  • Level 2 features curated inspiration zones and solutions for bedrooms, living rooms and dining spaces. This is also where you’d go to customise your sofas and beds, and pick and choose from more than a dozen mattress options.
  • Level 3 features The Home’s “man cave” set-up and a display of industrial and rustic furnishings. This level also has a mother’s room, a play area for children with staff to watch over the kids, furniture for nurseries and children’s rooms, and the store’s design studio.
     
Where can I submit a sample?

Volunteers can now submit DNA samples at a number of centres across Abu Dhabi. The programme is open to all ages.

Collection centres in Abu Dhabi include:

  • Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre (ADNEC)
  • Biogenix Labs in Masdar City
  • Al Towayya in Al Ain
  • NMC Royal Hospital in Khalifa City
  • Bareen International Hospital
  • NMC Specialty Hospital, Al Ain
  • NMC Royal Medical Centre - Abu Dhabi
  • NMC Royal Women’s Hospital.
The specs

Engine: Four electric motors, one at each wheel

Power: 579hp

Torque: 859Nm

Transmission: Single-speed automatic

Price: From Dh825,900

On sale: Now

COMPANY%20PROFILE
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECompany%20name%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%203S%20Money%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%202018%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20London%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounders%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Ivan%20Zhiznevsky%2C%20Eugene%20Dugaev%20and%20Andrei%20Dikouchine%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESector%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20FinTech%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestment%20stage%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20%245.6%20million%20raised%20in%20total%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Famous left-handers

- Marie Curie

- Jimi Hendrix

- Leonardo Di Vinci

- David Bowie

- Paul McCartney

- Albert Einstein

- Jack the Ripper

- Barack Obama

- Helen Keller

- Joan of Arc

The%20Emperor%20and%20the%20Elephant
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EAuthor%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESam%20Ottewill-Soulsby%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EPublisher%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EPrinceton%20University%20Press%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EPages%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E392%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EAvailable%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EJuly%2011%3C%2Fp%3E%0A