A former German admiral has laid out reasons why NATO and the European Union are putting themselves on a war footing. In a long article titled "Who Are Our Enemies?" Vice-Admiral Ulrich Weisser has explained the so-called threats which Europe and NATO now face. "The threats of yesterday," he says, "have been replaced by a multiplicity of risks which have a different quality." In the foreground are ethnic, religious and nationalistic rivalries which can lead to "the collapse of state order....

"It is not the main task of the German army to be stationed in places but instead to be ready for action." There are dangers of "unpredictable regimes," "organized crime" and "cyber-terrorism" attacking the world economic information system. Germany is at particular risk because it is "a leading industrial and exporting nation and thus extremely dependent on the outside world and interlinked with the international community." Military force, to put it bluntly, must protect Germany's interests as an exporter, but must also ensure freedom of movement for trade and the supply of raw materials. To be sure, all these problems cannot be solved by armed intervention-which is why "conflict prevention" is required.

Source: The European Foundation/Intelligence Digest Issue No. 113/February 8-21, 2001.