Ah, diplomacy- the fine art of f*****g your buddy while leaving him (or her) with a smile on their face. In this case, the "buddy" richly deserved the abuse. If France hadn't historically followed such self-centered policy goals, they just might have succeeded in monkeywrenching Shrub's war plans.
For a month, France, Germany and Belgium blocked a U.S. proposal to begin planning to help defend Turkey from possible retaliatory attacks by Saddam Hussein in the event of another war in the Persian Gulf. They argued such a move was premature and would undermine U.N. efforts to avoid war.
On Sunday, the 19-member alliance turned to its Defense Planning Committee, which Paris withdrew from in 1966, to negotiate an end to the NATO deadlock. Paris participates only in political consultations.
The committee was used before the 1991 war against Iraq to approve aid for Turkey. But NATO has sought to limit its use since the end of the Cold War in a spirit of rapprochement with Paris.
"Alliance solidarity has prevailed," NATO Secretary-General Lord Robertson said. "We have been able collectively to overcome the impasse."
With France sidelined, Germany dropped its objections and Belgium followed hours later.
"We would have preferred to have a decision ... with all 19 members present," Robertson said. "France believed that these measures were not yet opportune. But I hope that people will not in any way get a signal that it implies any less commitment" to Turkey's defense.
The United States called the decision a "very big step forward" for the alliance -- even without France.
ESPECIALLY without France. If you're looking for someone to blame, how about Charles DeGaulle? If he hadn't pulled France out of NATO's defense planning council in 1966, they would have had a voice in yesterday's coup. Tough luck, guys....
