Afghan war plan endorsed
STRASBOURG, France - France and Germany fully endorsed President Barack Obama's new Afghan war strategy but continued to firmly resist U.S. demands for more combat troops on Saturday in a rift that overshadowed symbols of unity at NATO's 60th-anniversary summit.
Obama told NATO leaders the alliance should remain open to new members, another stance that is likely to meet resistance from his allies. Germany, France and many other NATO nations believe any more eastward expansion will further damage ties with Russia that the alliance is trying hard to mend.
NATO's ability to succeed in Afghanistan is seen as a crucial test of the power and relevance of the alliance founded to counterbalance the Soviet Union and now fighting a rising insurgency far beyond its borders. European leaders and voters remain deeply skeptical about whether more troops can stabilize a country devastated by decades of war.
As the summit itself got under way, Obama took a moment to welcome Albania and Croatia to being alliance membership to 28. Obama said he looked forward to the day when Macedonia will join NATO. Macedonia's accession to NATO has been blocked over a dispute the country has with Greece.
Afghanistan remained at the heart of the summit. French President Nicolas Sarkozy and German Chancellor Angela Merkel again stressed their support for the new strategy on Afghanistan that Obama was formally unveiling.
"We cannot afford to lose," Sarkozy said in opening remarks, "because there (Afghanistan), some of the freedom of the world is at stake." Merkel, the summit co-host, said Afghanistan was a "test" case for the alliance.
Good will toward Obama was in ample evidence.
"We trust him," Sarkozy said. "We were expecting and waiting for the words we heard."
At the summit's opening on Friday, Obama promised to repair damaged relations with Europe and asked for support of his new strategy, which has him adding 21,000 U.S. troops to the force of 38,000 struggling against Taliban advances alongside a like number of European, Canadian and non-NATO forces
A senior U.S. official traveling with Obama said Saturday that the administration expects pledges and commitments from other NATO nations would come in the next few weeks.
