• bumphot@lemy.lol
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    7
    arrow-down
    37
    ·
    8 months ago

    This just means that Sweden will have send their troops to fight wars in middle east for oil companies. Russia is hardly capable of attacking Ukraine that is right next to it and has some local support of some Russian citizens. They would never make it to Sweden in the next 100 years. But a lot of lives will be lost in the Middle East in that time.

    • SpiderShoeCult
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      24
      arrow-down
      1
      ·
      8 months ago

      isn’t NATO a defensive treaty? which would mean no obligation to participate in actions of aggression?

      • BraveSirZaphod@kbin.social
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        21
        ·
        8 months ago

        It absolutely is; this guy is either an idiot or deliberately misleading.

        Article V has been invoked exactly one time, by the United States after the September 11 attacks. The direct outcomes of this were two operations: Operation Eagle Assist, where NATO forces helped patrol and monitor US airspace in the immediate months after 9/11, and Operation Active Endeavour, a maritime operation where NATO ships patrolled and secured shipping lines in the Mediterranean. NATO itself was not directly involved under Article V in the Iraq invasion, though some members did voluntarily participate (hence Bush’s “coalition of the willing”).

        There have been NATO operations in the Middle East under Article IV invoked by Turkey, which mandates only military consultation from members, not direct intervention, though they may voluntarily participate if they want. Likewise, NATO was involved in Afghanistan (which, it should be noted, is not in the Middle East) and Libya in a similar voluntary capacity. It should be noted that, despite not being a member, Sweden did participate in NATO operations in Afghanistan, voluntarily.

        Sweden is only obligated to participate in military action if a member state is actively attacked. Otherwise, it’s able to voluntarily participate in other NATO operations, as it has already done in the past. That NATO is a tightly organized and coordinated international military organization makes it really useful for large international operations - generally directed by the UN - but outside of defensive invocations of Article V, these are strictly optional, and members very much have refused to participate in American-led operations that they don’t agree with (see Iraq).

      • bumphot@lemy.lol
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        5
        arrow-down
        25
        ·
        8 months ago

        Only on paper. In practice there are many financial and military infulence that US gets when a country joins NATO that result in joining wars in Middle East.

        • BraveSirZaphod@kbin.social
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          10
          arrow-down
          1
          ·
          8 months ago

          Such as when America tried to lead everyone into a predictably disastrous invasion of Iraq, resulting in most of Europe telling us to fuck off?

          Truly, the ‘infulence’ of America is mighty and all must tremble before it.

            • BraveSirZaphod@kbin.social
              link
              fedilink
              arrow-up
              7
              ·
              8 months ago

              This was all after the invasion to support the fledgling new Iraqi government.

              If ten trainers from Norway training the Iraqi military to resist terrorist attacks is your idea of an example of gross western imperialism, you’ll have to forgive me for not being hugely convinced.

              • bumphot@lemy.lol
                link
                fedilink
                English
                arrow-up
                2
                arrow-down
                7
                ·
                8 months ago

                You took it out of a context of a bigger picture. Of course on it self it is not the end of the World, but it was a simple show of how US influneced NATO states to do its bidding to get oil. Other horrible things that they are doing around the World and other NATO invasions are what really puts it all toghether.

                • BraveSirZaphod@kbin.social
                  link
                  fedilink
                  arrow-up
                  3
                  arrow-down
                  1
                  ·
                  8 months ago

                  No, it is not, and I’m not going to allow you to just walk back your claims after some inconvenience. To quote you yourself:

                  This just means that Sweden will have [to] send their troops to fight wars in middle east for oil companies.

                  No, it doesn’t. NATO membership does not mean that anyone is forced to fight wars in the Middle East. If that were the case, all of NATO would have been roped into the Iraq invasion, but they weren’t. The vast majority told America to fuck off during the invasion, and only lightly participated in some minor training operations with the Iraqi military afterwards.

                  And again, Sweden not being in NATO did not prevent it from participating in other NATO campaigns in a voluntary capacity. Your claim that Sweden joining NATO means that it’s going to be forced to participate in all these Middle Eastern wars against its will simply does not stand up to even a cursory look at actual reality. You can believe whatever you like since it appears that you’re immune to facts, but anyone else reading this should know that you’re not saying anything based in actual evidence.

                  Also, if you really think that ten Norwegians trying to teach Iraqi soldiers how to resist the groups that later became ISIS is an example of the “horrible things” that NATO does, that says much more about you than it does about NATO. The world is actually more complicated than “US brainwashes the world into killing the third world because oil”.

                  Cheers.

                  • bumphot@lemy.lol
                    link
                    fedilink
                    English
                    arrow-up
                    1
                    arrow-down
                    2
                    ·
                    8 months ago

                    They are not forced legally but practically indirectly. It is as voluntary as someone agreeing to landlords terms or those of your employer. Legally speaking, yes no one is forcing you, practically speaking you don’t really have a choice and such a system was created on purpose so you can’t have a choice. Once you start depending on US for their support in your defense, you need to scratch their back in doing an invasion or two so they keep supplying your weapons.

        • Zanshi@lemmy.world
          link
          fedilink
          English
          arrow-up
          7
          arrow-down
          2
          ·
          8 months ago

          What’s your source on that?

          If none go spread your propaganda somewhere else, you’re either a russian bot or a sympathiser. Either way you will find no friends here.

          • bumphot@lemy.lol
            link
            fedilink
            English
            arrow-up
            4
            arrow-down
            24
            ·
            8 months ago

            https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NATO#Military_operations All of NATO wars were in non-NATO countries, all where offensive invasitions. They fight in MIddle East for oil companies. I do not sympathize with Russian government, they are just as bad when given the chance. But NATO is scarier. Calling people to support Russia when they critisize your government is insane.

            • BraveSirZaphod@kbin.social
              link
              fedilink
              arrow-up
              8
              arrow-down
              1
              ·
              8 months ago

              And again, the only mandatory after Article V have been monitoring and patrolling US airspace for a few months after 9/11 and some maritime operations in the Mediterranean to protect shipping and prevent terrorism and smuggling. All those other NATO operations were voluntary, and other NATO countries have happily told the US to fuck off when they don’t want to be involved.

              Also, Sweden, despite not being in NATO, also participated in operations in Afghanistan. Your premise that being in NATO necessarily causes you to be involuntarily dragged into gallivanting around the Middle East is simply false. Other nations have autonomy and agency, actually. Not everything is about America.

              • bumphot@lemy.lol
                link
                fedilink
                English
                arrow-up
                2
                arrow-down
                6
                ·
                8 months ago

                Sweden, like many other non-NATO states, are only officially not in NATO because of lack of popular support. These wars are used to pass these things officially. US influences many countries, being in NATO officailly makes this easier. As volontery as it might seem, people rarely give support for these things and politicains that do usually get funded by the US.

              • bumphot@lemy.lol
                link
                fedilink
                English
                arrow-up
                2
                arrow-down
                14
                ·
                8 months ago

                Wikipedia has citations. I don’t know what could you find as more reliable? What did you have in mind? Also I don’t think this is fair. I gave you the source, it is just as reliable as any other, since it has citations for all of it. If the situtation was reversed and you saw wikipedia article that claimed the opposite and I replied exactly the way you did, how would you react? Be honest