* Dirty little war could infect the whole world Aug 19, 2008
For Putin, the 1990s under former Russian president Boris Yeltsin was a period of national humiliation in which a weakened Russia was forced to accept Western economic help and which saw former members of the Warsaw Pact embrace NATO, the Wests military club. Over the past two years, Putin has given ample warning of his intentions to overturn the status quo in international affairs. (Taipei Times, Taiwan -- World)
60 things the Class of 2012 has in common Aug 19, 2008
The Warsaw Pact is as hazy for them as the League of Nations was for their parents. 21. (The Pantagraph newspaper)
The Strategic Lessons of Georgia Aug 18, 2008
Moscow may not be able to halt expanding NATO, as former members of the Warsaw Pact do not seem less eager to join the western Alliance. While Putin and his troops have succeeded in lashing out at Georgia, such action against former Warsaw Pact allies like the Czech Republic, Hungary and Poland all now NATO members would be suicidal. (Time.com)
* Remember the Prague Spring for what it was Aug 16, 2008
The events of 1968 were crushed by the Warsaw Pact members, but gave birth to a new political consciousness ... The Polish freedom movement of 1968 lost its confrontation with police violence; the Prague Spring was crushed by the armies of five Warsaw Pact members. (Taipei Times, Taiwan -- World)
Missile Defense: The New Warsaw Pact Aug 16, 2008
Today in Investor's Business Daily stock analysis and business news. INVESTOR'S BUSINESS DAILY. (Investors Business Daily)
Georgia May Not Be Last To Fall If Dominoes Tip Back Other Way Aug 15, 2008
By 1992, when the Soviet Union imploded, freeing the captive nations of the Warsaw Pact and the non-Russian "Soviet Republics" Georgia among them the domino theory seemed to be working in reverse ... Second came the April NATO Summit in Romania, at which the U.S. and former Warsaw Pact nations backed a NATO invitation for Georgia and Ukraine, over the go-slow position of France and Germany ... Will the U.S. and Europe take steps to shore up security relationships among the former nations of the... (Investors Business Daily)
Diplomacy: Washington policy on Russia wobbling Aug 14, 2008
That was a contrast from the opening months of the Bush administration when advisers pushed the White House to unilaterally pull out of arms control treaties and propose American military bases in former Warsaw Pact countries. "There has always seemed to be a split within the government, so a consistent policy for dealing with Russia has been absent," said James Townsend, a former Pentagon official. (Boston Globe)
Newsweek: Why the West should intervene Aug 12, 2008
In the wake of the cold war, the West providentially summoned the nerve to push eastward to incorporate the former Warsaw Pact vassals of the Soviet Unionpresciently doing this while post-Soviet Russia was too weak to resist. But once Moscow got its breath back, anyone with historical wit could foresee a revived Russian push for influence in central Europe. (MSNBC -- International)
Saakashvili overplays his hand Aug 12, 2008
In an effort to prod the West to Tbilisi's side in its rapidly escalating armed conflict with Russia, Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili is invoking the ghosts of Cold War battles past - Moscow's suppression of the 1956 Hungarian uprising, the 1968 Warsaw Pact invasion of Czechoslovakia, and the Soviet incursion into Afghanistan in 1979. The Georgian leader's strategy is clear. (Asia Times Online)
Putin Bares His Soul Aug 12, 2008
The entire premise of NATO was to counter the Warsaw pact. But the Warsaw pact no longer exists. (Townhall.com)
Russia steps up its push; West faces tough choices Aug 12, 2008
Even for an emboldened Moscow, the Russian foray into Georgia carries substantial risks: not just global isolation from the Western democracies, but also anger from neighboring states of the former Soviet Union and Warsaw Pact, the prospect of perpetual military quagmires around its borders, if not on the catastrophic scale of the Soviet war in Afghanistan, and nationalist reprisals like those that resulted from its crackdown in Chechnya. A crowd of more than 1,000 people demonstrated in the... (International Herald Tribune)
Lonely Night in Georgia Aug 12, 2008
A few counterquestions for those who rise to compare every nasty leader to Hitler and every act of aggression to the onset of World War III: Do you really believe that Russia's move against Georgia is not an assertion of control over "the near abroad" (as the Russians call their border regions), but rather the first step of a campaign to restore the Warsaw Pact in Eastern Europe and, from there, bring back the Cold War's Continental standoff. If soif this really is the start of a new war of... (Slate)
Europe's New War Aug 11, 2008
The dissolution of the Warsaw Pact saw the expansion of NATO right to the borders of Russia, which was bitterly resented in that country. Burgeoning revenues from the export of oil and gas, together with adroit use of anti-western sentiment by President Vladimir Putin, led to Russia reasserting itself abroad while curtailing its newly established democracy at home. (India Times, India)
U.S. gymnasts beaming with confidence Aug 9, 2008
In the heyday of the Warsaw Pact, the Soviet Union and Romania ruled the gymnastics world, and the women from the United States could only dream of being allowed to work out in the same gym with them. Mary Lou Retton gave the sport a boost in her homeland when she hit her perfect 10, brought home the gold and took up residence on a Wheaties box in 1984. (MSNBC -- Sports)
August 21, 1968; Soviet Invasion of... Aug 4, 2008
August 21, 1968; Soviet Invasion of Czechoslovak: Warsaw Pact "Normalized" the Prague Spring in Todays Czech Republic ... Warsaw Pact "Normalized" the Prague Spring in Todays Czech Republic ... Reformer Alexander Dubcek zech Communist Party declared "democratic socialism" in August 1968; but Warsaw Pact nations w hard liners were not listening. (Suite101.com)
Honecker's nuclear bunker opens Aug 3, 2008
It was said to be the most advanced bunker in the Warsaw Pact countries. They will be led along submarine-like tunnels divided by heavy metal doors, leading on to 170 rooms. (BBC News -- Europe)
East German leaders' nuclear bunker opens Aug 3, 2008
"At the time it was built, it was the most elaborate Warsaw Pact protective structure outside the Soviet Union," Hannes Hensel of the Berlin Bunker Network, a private group now in charge of the facility, said before the first public tours on Saturday. The divided Germany was on the front line of the Cold War between nuclear-armed Soviet bloc and Western powers. (International Herald Tribune -- Sports)
Russia's plan to avert second cold war Jul 29, 2008
Confidantes of former Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev say that US leaders reneged on pledges to build a "new world order" after Soviet troops withdrew from Eastern Europe and the Communist military alliance the Warsaw Pact was disbanded. "Gorbachev made deep concessions to the West in order to break out of the vicious cycle of the arms race. But later, when Russia was going through a painful economic transition and we needed support, the West turned away," says Andrei Grachev, who was... (Christian Science Monitor)
The best global strategy to contain radical Islam may be the one that won the Cold War Jul 28, 2008
Just as we limited Soviet expansion without using overt force against the Warsaw Pact, so too can we contain the Iranian regime without flying B-2s over Tehran. Furthermore, we must institutionalize the lessons learned so painfully over seven years of war. (Boston Globe)
President Bush Discusses Freedom Agenda Jul 25, 2008
During the Cold War, the nations of Central and Eastern Europe were part of the Warsaw Pact alliance that was poised to attack Western Europe. Today, most of those nations are members of the NATO alliance, who are using their freedom to aid the rise of other young democracies. (White House News Releases)
Fast Facts: Serbia Jul 22, 2008
Although Communist, Tito's new government and his successors (he died in 1980) managed to steer their own path between the Warsaw Pact nations and the West for the next four and a half decades. In 1989, Slobodan Milosevic became president of the Serbian Republic and his ultranationalist calls for Serbian domination led to the violent breakup of Yugoslavia along ethnic lines. (CBS News -- World)
DANIEL MCGROARTY: Is Europe heading for Yalta 2.0? Jul 17, 2008
With the former members of the Soviet-led Warsaw Pact now firmly in the NATO camp - and even Russian ally Serbia (this week) approving a new pro-European Union government - Russia's security interests appear to be shifting eastward to the inner ring of former Soviet republics. Seen in this light, the missile defense row provides a convenient pretext for Russia's real interest. (Fresno Bee -- Opinion)
A war just waiting to happen Jul 16, 2008
The underlying issue is the fact that since the dissolution of the Warsaw Pact in 1991, one after the other former members as well as former states of the USSR have been coaxed and in many cases bribed with false promises by Washington into joining the counter organization, NATO.. Rather than initiate discussions after the 1991 dissolution of the Warsaw Pact about a systematic dissolution of NATO, Washington has systematically converted NATO into what can only be called the military vehicle of... (Asia Times Online)
With Soviet enemy gone, NATO polishes its brand Jul 16, 2008
During the Cold War years, when Western and Warsaw Pact tanks massed on either side of the Iron Curtain, the idea of a brand for NATO would have been ludicrous because everyone knew why it was important. Not any more. (International Herald Tribune)
Bronislaw Geremek, who helped end Communist control of Poland, is dead at 76 Jul 14, 2008
This negotiated change of power provided a template for other countries in the Warsaw Pact and, in the years since, far beyond ... The fall of the Berlin Wall provided such a potent, tangible symbol of the end of Communist hegemony in Eastern Europe that it has become easy to forget the leading role that the Solidarity movement in Poland played in breaking down the aura of invincibility of the authoritarian regimes of the Warsaw Pact. (International Herald Tribune)
Powerful blasts rock Bulgaria army depot Jul 4, 2008
Svinarov said Bulgaria had large quantities of useless munitions left over since its military switched from the Warsaw Pact to NATO in 2004. He told Bulgarian National Radio the army was unable to immediately destroy all obsolete ammunition due to lack of funds. (MSNBC -- International)
Boat races, fireworks, bands, truck pulls and polkas highlight the holiday Jul 3, 2008
It was the year Dwight D. Eisenhower had a heart attack; Winston Churchill, British prime minister, resigned; Emmett Till was murdered; the Warsaw Pact was signed; the Civil Rights Movement began; James Dean died; and the first annual Big Butler Fair was held. The Big Butler Fair isn't just an opportunity to see cars crash into each other or view dairy showmanship contests. (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, PA)
Eastern Europe's Richest Jul 2, 2008
This year 16 billionaires come from former Warsaw Pact countries and Ukraine, the most ever since five billionaires from the region joined the ranks of the world's billionaires in 2005. All are self-made, having taken advantage of the region's rapid-fire privatizations in the 1990s. (Forbes -- Business)
Capitol Comments Jun 29, 2008
In 1955, the Warsaw Pact was signed by a block of Communist countries in Central and Eastern Europe. The Soviet-led pact - formalizing what Winston Churchill called "the Iron Curtain" in a speech right after World War II - was to be the Communist answer to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). (Lake Houston Sun, TX)
Israel: We Will Strike Iran Alone Jun 27, 2008
The Soviet Union then ordered Warsaw Pact forces to invade Hungary to suppress an anti-communist revolution. Thus, the invasion of Suez drained whatever propaganda advantage Eisenhower could have obtained from naked Soviet aggression. (Newsmax)
Test of strength for alliances Jun 25, 2008
In response, the Soviets formed the Warsaw Pact. What the world got was not security but the Cold War, dozens of brushfire conflicts across. (Asia Times Online)
473 comments Jun 23, 2008
" That statement becomes more relevant each day! Hey, just look at the two candidates we have chosen or the highest office in the land.....The reality is that neither represent what is needed to fix the problems facing our nation. But, hey, do we care........not so much!! Cheers~ G, CAJun 20, 2008 @ 03:33 AMFinally someone has had enough fortitude to challenge the conventional wisdom neatly packaged by "the victors" as history. Neatly arranged material that has been thoroughly laundered of... (Human Events Online)
U.S. may seek to base missile shield in Lithuania Jun 19, 2008
Both are NATO countries that belonged to the defunct, Soviet-led Warsaw Pact. But taking the missile defense shield onto former Soviet territory was a suggestion that surprised, and even stunned, some European security experts. (International Herald Tribune)
Sarkozy to propose smaller, more high-tech army Jun 18, 2008
"The Warsaw Pact has disappeared. NATO stretches to the borders of Russia. There is no threat of an invasion of French territory.". The new defence strategy calls for a smaller but more flexible reaction force of 30,000 troops that could be sent within six months to a conflict zone up to 8,000 kilometres away. (Globe and Mail -- International)
President Bush Visits Paris, Speaks to Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development Jun 14, 2008
We've seen former members of the Warsaw Pact proudly sign the treaty to join NATO. We witnessed an Orange Revolution in Ukraine, a Rose Revolution in Georgia, a declaration of independence in Kosovo, and the rise of a democratic movement in Belarus. America admires these brave stands for liberty. (White House News Releases)
Letter from Europe Jun 4, 2008
EU enlargement has shaped the Continent over recent decades as former dictatorships like Spain and Greece transformed themselves into modern democracies and former Warsaw Pact countries followed their lead. But Turkey, which is already negotiating EU membership, is on the brink of an internal political crisis destined to test the limits of EU soft power. (International Herald Tribune)
Mugabe rivals: Mengistu must face justice May 29, 2008
"It is important that others lean in that direction, considering the fact that the people in Ethiopia, in order for them to have national healing ... they would want to execute. "So as a government, we are not going to be an impediment to the realization of the truth," Chamisa said. He added that his party does not, however, support the death penalty. Wednesday is a national holiday in Ethiopia, the day when the country celebrates the end of Mengistu's regime, known as the Derg. Don't Miss The... (CNN -- World)
'New Europe' flexes its muscle at Eurovision song contest May 24, 2008
Derek Gatherer, a data analyst who number-crunches Eurovision results as a hobby and has published papers on his results, says there are three main voting blocs in Eurovision: the Balkan Bloc, the Viking Empire, and the Warsaw Pact, as well as a number of smaller voting partnerships, such as an enduring friendship between Greece and Cyprus. He refutes other academics' claim that cultural factors explain the Eurovision voting trends. (Christian Science Monitor)
EU and Russia agree to new series of wide-ranging talks May 22, 2008
Published: May 21, 2008. Ending an 18-month impasse, European Union countries agreed Wednesday to begin wide-ranging new negotiations with Russia, raising hopes that an era of tension and confrontation with Moscow could give way to an improved relationship. (International Herald Tribune)
GLOBAL: Is this the end for cluster munitions? May 18, 2008
Cluster munitions were developed during the Cold War and it was envisaged that they would be used against massed formations of tanks and infantry during a conventional conflict between Warsaw Pact forces and those of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation. They have so far been used in at least 21 countries, but rarely, if ever, for their intended purpose as weapons to be deployed against tanks and massed infantry formations, and usually in close proximity to civilian populations. (AlertNet)
1968: A year of global revolt Apr 19, 2008
AUGUST: Warsaw Pact tanks crush the "Prague Spring" reforms, leaving scores dead, after Czechoslovakia's leader Alexander Dubcek attempts to create a "communism with a human approach". OCTOBER: Ten days before the start of the Mexico City Olympics, and after months of political unrest, between 200 and 300 students are killed after police fire a hail of bullets to end a demonstration in Tlatelolco, Mexico City. (iAfrica.com)
Youth revolution turns 40 Apr 19, 2008
In August, tanks from the Soviet Union and most of its Warsaw Pact allies rolled into Prague which would have to wait another 20 years for an end to Soviet oppression. In Mexico, students and peasants who hero-worshipped Che Guevara turned on the ruling Institutional Revolutionary Party in the run-up to the 1968 Olympic Games. (iAfrica.com)
Letters to the Editor Apr 9, 2008
In response to Eugene Rumer's April 1 Opinion piece, "NATO's message to Russia": With the dismantling of the Warsaw Pact forces, there is no need for the Atlantic Alliance. NATO is not an economic alliance after all; its purpose is military. (Christian Science Monitor)
Paranoia backed by just cause Apr 7, 2008
Might it be because, at the end of the Cold War, the nonviolent dissolution of the Warsaw Pact was matched by a beefing up of its counterpart, the Atlantic alliance. Instead of dismantling a military juggernaut defined by enmity with Moscow, Washington flexed it like a muscle, as if Moscow were still an enemy. (Boston Globe)
Bush fails to win over Putin on missile shield Apr 6, 2008
Russia fears the system, to be based in former Warsaw Pact nations Poland and the Czech Republic, is aimed at its nuclear deterrent. U.S. officials deny this and insist it is intended only to defend NATO allies from missiles launched by rogue Mideast nations, like Iran. (Huntington WSAZ-TV, WV)
NATO supports Bush on missile defense plan Apr 5, 2008
Figuratively and literally, it is moving away from its post-World War II roots as an alliance of the United States, Canada and the major powers of Western Europe erecting a defense network against the nations of the Soviet-led Warsaw Pact. A day after it became clear that the alliance would balk at meeting Bush's demand to put Ukraine and Georgia on the first rung of a ladder intended to lead toward membership, the alliance instead said the countries would eventually be allowed in - and that... (San Francisco Chronicle -- Politics)
Bush loses out in Bucharest Apr 4, 2008
All the while its partners are becoming more numerous than its members with a far more complex set of challenges than dealing with the Cold War threat from the Warsaw pact. It has become clear that the more Nato expands the less effective it has become. (Aljazeera.Net)
Missile shield clears one hurdle, but others await Apr 4, 2008
Kosachev said the Kremlin was still opposed to the U.S. plans to deploy the system in countries that were once part of the Warsaw Pact. "We still do not have a proper explanation of this project," he said. (International Herald Tribune)
Remarks by President Bush and President Basescu of Romania in Joint Press Availability Apr 3, 2008
And what's interesting is 20 years ago, our nations were separated by a Cold War and Romania was a member of the Warsaw Pact, and the Romanian people suffered under a cruel dictator. Today, think how things have changed. (PR Newswire)
Bush denies Ukraine, Georgia 'trade-offs' He says talks with Putin won't... Apr 3, 2008
For Bush, the Bucharest summit provides an opportunity to draw attention to the changes that have taken place in the alliance since his presidency began in 2001, its reach now covering a wide swath of Eastern Europe from the Baltic to the Black Sea that during the Cold War was part of the Warsaw Pact. Bush says in excerpts of a text distributed by the White House for a speech he plans to give today that extending the initial opening to Ukraine and Georgia would signal to their citizens "that if... (San Francisco Chronicle -- Politics)
White House Press Corps GROUNDED in Romania; UNITED 777s Receive Inspections... Apr 3, 2008
Romania was never a Soviet Republic, although it was part of the Warsaw Pact. Posted by: Bill G | April 2, 2008 05:11 PM. (The Drudge Report)
Bush urges open doors for NATO Apr 3, 2008
By Richard Wolf, USA TODAY BUCHAREST, Romania If President Bush has his way, fledgling democracies and former Warsaw Pact nations of Central and Eastern Europe will be in the majority at future NATO summits. The 12 original members who joined forces in 1949 stretched from the United States and Canada as far east as Italy. (USA Today)
Bush Vows Support for Ukraine, Georgia NATO Hopes Apr 2, 2008
With nine former Soviet bloc countries already NATO members, Russia is opposed to Ukraine and Georgia even starting the process, fearing a further loss of influence in two more Soviet-era Warsaw Pact neighbors. A senior Russian diplomat warned Tuesday that Ukraine's accession to NATO would cause a "deep crisis" in relations with Moscow. (Fox News -- Politics)
Path to NATO Expansion Isn't That Clear Apr 2, 2008
It was created as a military counterweight to the Soviet Union and the old Warsaw Pact, but neither exists today and, indeed, many former Soviet client states (including the ones Mr. Rumsfeld wishes to add) are now its members. Organized as a military alliance, NATO is now reduced to providing humanitarian aid, conducting police actions and monitoring its members' commitment to human rights. (Wall Street Journal)
Russia's problems nudge Afghanistan off the map Apr 2, 2008
Germany's* entrance into the alliance prompts the Soviet Union to gather eight east European nations into the Warsaw Pact coalition ... For the first time, the alliance welcomes former Warsaw pact countries Czech Republic, Hungary and Poland, beginning the shift of allegiances from East to West. (Globe and Mail)
German Chill Toward NATO's Growth Ignores Past: Frederick Kempe Apr 2, 2008
The Soviets saw the move as such a direct threat that they then formed their own military alliance: the Warsaw Pact. Stirring Up Trouble. (Bloomberg -- Columnists)
Summit Will Test West's Readiness To Deal With A Resurgent Russia Apr 2, 2008
Not on the official agenda, however, but forming the unofficial subtext of the session: How to counter a resurgent Russia, seeking to reassert its influence not only over the territories of the old Warsaw Pact, but across the rest of Europe as well. In contrast to previous summits, NATO nations won't have to guess at Russia's reaction. (Investors Business Daily)
Rumsfeld Rides Again as NATO Splits Into Old, New Europe on Expansion, War Apr 1, 2008
New allies like Poland, the Czech Republic and Hungary -- the first three Warsaw Pact alumni to join NATO, in 1999 -- equate the alliance with freedom from tyranny. They endured five decades of Communist occupation,'' says Rumsfeld, 75. (Bloomberg)
Russia at center of NATO meeting Apr 1, 2008
1955: Communist nations create Warsaw Pact. 1957: Soviets beat U.s. into space. (USA Today)
George W. Bush: The bygone American Mar 31, 2008
But NATO has successfully added several Warsaw Pact countries to its roster under Mr. Bush's watch, and has become militarily and diplomatically more active, for which the U.S. President can take some of the credit. And if Mr. McCain beats the odds and wins in November, giving the Republicans 12 straight years in the White House, Mr. Bush's defenders will rightly insist that he deserves praise for helping make that victory possible. (Globe and Mail -- International)
Russian official dismisses NATO call Mar 29, 2008
"Is Russia going to deploy any new military bases of its armed forces in Mexico or Canada; or is it negotiating on the accession of Iceland or Northern Ireland to the Warsaw Pact organization; or is Russia deploying its strategic missile defense in Mexico; or is Russia recognizing some parts of sovereign states, like Northern Ireland, Corsica, or the Basque area in Spain, irrespective of the fact that it's prohibited by international law?". Russia is doing none of them, he said, in a veiled... (Xinhuanet, China)
DoD News Briefing with Br... Mar 29, 2008
But the Warsaw Pact equipment that we got in the past has been of good quality. Q Good morning, General. (DOD DefenseLINK -- News)
NATO divided over Ukraine, Georgia membership bids Mar 28, 2008
Advocate nations argue former Warsaw Pact states particularly vociferously that a blanket denial of the bids will have major geostrategic implications: It will thwart the fragile democratic "color revolutions" in those states, allow Moscow time to bully the states back into its control, and constitute a veto by Russia over NATO membership. "This is dramatic high-stakes stuff," says Ronald Asmus, a former US diplomat who is now director of the German Marshall Fund in Brussels. (Christian Science Monitor)
Retired general: On the fly response strategy must change Mar 28, 2008
He noted that during the time the Soviet Union and its Warsaw Pact allies were the threat, the U.S. had thousands of linguists in the military and other federal agencies. But, when he assumed command of CENTCOM, he was dismayed to find out there were fewer than 300 Arabic experts and for what he has termed the long war, that wasn t enough. (Sierra Vista Herald, AZ)
It's time for Anju to jump the talk! Mar 20, 2008
Anju hinted that Usha finished fourth at LA only because of the boycott by the erstwhile Warsaw Pact members in retaliation for the Nato nations boycott of the 1980 Moscow Olympics to protest the invasion of Afghanistan. The 44-year-old Usha, once rated by the International Amateur Athletic Federation as one of the worlds eight best athletes, was quite mature in her response to the comment by her 31-year-old compatriot: Anju is like a small child to me. (India Times)
