NATO commander Gen. Christopher Cavoli delivered his annual posture statement to the Senate Armed Services Committee on April 3 where he responded to rumors that the Trump Administration is considering giving up the American hold on the position that he now occupies. Giving up American military leadership of the NATO alliance would be “problematic,” he argued, reported Military.com. “Our allies crave our leadership and are stronger with it, and are stronger for us,” Cavoli claimed.
But the number one reason he gave for keeping the NATO command was the alliance’s nuclear sharing program where a number of countries have custody of U.S.-supplied nuclear weapons but the U.S. retains control of them. Cavoli argued that having the same officer in charge of both U.S. and NATO forces prevents complications with nuclear command and control.
“We have some nuclear weapons that in a conflict, upon the agreement of the United States and the rest of the nations, would be turned over to SACEUR to be delivered by a variety of nations who are involved in this program, all of them NATO nations,” Cavoli said. “If SACEUR were not an American officer, we would have to find some other way to do that, and it would certainly not be as integrated with the rest of SACEUR’s operations as it is now.”
“I and key American elements of my staff at the NATO headquarters, at Supreme Allied headquarters Europe, we are able to be the link in that chain that makes it seamless,” he added later.
Cavoli also told the committee that Russia is building up the size of its Armed Forces faster than analysts estimated, replacing combat equipment and ammunition at an unprecedented pace. “The Russian military is reconstituting and growing at a faster rate than most analysts had anticipated,” he said in his prepared statement, reported TASS. “Russia is not just reconstituting service members but is also replacing combat vehicles and munitions at an unprecedented pace.”
According to Cavoli’s estimates, the Russian Armed Forces are “today larger than it was at the beginning” of the special military operation. “Russia has expanded its industrial production, opened new manufacturing facilities, and converted commercial production lines for military purposes. As a result, the Russian defense industrial base is expected to roll out 1,500 tanks, 3,000 armored vehicles, and 200 Iskander ballistic and cruise missiles this year. Comparatively, the United States only produces about 135 tanks per year and no longer produces new Bradley fighting vehicles,” the general emphasized.
