Towards a New Iron Curtain: The US-NATO Missile Shield Encircles Eurasia
by Mahdi Darius Nazemroaya
Global Research, December 28, 2010
Western Europe through NATO and the E.U. forms the primary bridgehead of America into Eurasia.
According to Brzezinski: “[NATO and the E.U. constitute] America’s most important global relationship. It is the
springboard for U.S. global involvement, enabling America to play the decisive role of arbiter in Eurasia — the world’s
central arena of power — and it creates a coalition that is globally dominant in all key dimensions of power and
influence.” [1]
The secondary bridgeheads of America into Eurasia are: (1) Japan and South Korea; (2) the Arabian Peninsula; and (3) the
U.S. and NATO military forces in occupied Iraq and Afghanistan.
This is why the expansion of the U.S. missile shield from a U.S. project to a NATO project should come as no surprise.
The globalization of NATO isd part of that process. The inclusion of the missile shield project under the helm of NATO
was already in the pipeline in the 1990s. In fact, the statements that NATO just adopted the missile shield project in
2010 are bold faced lies.
U.S. and NATO Missile Proliferation
Records of active NATO missile system proliferation go all the way back to 2006 with the Active Layered Theatre
Ballistic Missile Defence (ALTBMD) program. Within NATO, the U.S., Britain, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, the
Netherlands, Poland, and the Czech Republic have been working together for years in establishing a missile shield
system. While Israel, India, Australia, Taiwan, Japan, and Ukraine under its former Orangist government have all been
partners.
NATO even drafted a missile coordination policy in the same year as the Anglo-American invasion of Iraq, 2003. The draft
was ratified by NATO the next year, in 2004. France was also working on its own ballistic missile (SAMP-T) system, while
the Dutch, Germans, and Americans were jointly developing the integrated Extended Air/Theater Missile systems through
Project Optic Windmill.
"The Ring of Fire" and the New Iron Curtain: The Three Theatres of the Inter-Continental Missile Shield Project
The missile shield project is really a triad of three missile shields that form a global missile shield system
surrounding Eurasia. The three theatre segments of the missile shield are based in Europe, the Middle East, and East
Asia. East Asia includes both Northeast Asia and Southeast Asia. Moreover, there are also overlapping zones that link
the triad of missile shields. These are: (1) the Mediterranean, which links Europe and the Middle East; (2) the Indian
Ocean, which links the Middle East and East Asia; and (3) North America.
North America acts as the strategic depth of this weapons system and in reality is its command centre. The system is
linked to North American missile defences over the U.S., Canada, and Greenland. North America also serves to augment the
missile systems in both East Asia and Europe.
While Iran has been cited as a justification for a missile shield in Europe, the location of military facilities in
Greenland says something else. Geographically, Greenland is not a proper location to monitor any possible North Korean
missile threat or located in the best place to monitor any possible Iranian missile threat. Greenland is ideal for
monitoring Russian missiles that would travel over the Arctic Circle as the most logical route.
The European missile project is primarily aimed at Russia, while the East Asian missile project is aimed primarily at
China under the pretext of defence against North Korea. The Middle Eastern portion of the missile project is in Israel
and the Persian Gulf, hosted by countries like Saudi Arabia, and aimed at Iran and Syria. The establishment of a missile
shield in Turkey will primarily be aimed against Iran and Syria and will also provide the cover for an Israeli attempt
to attack Iran. In this context, many voices in Turkey have been raised in opposition to Turkish participation in the
NATO missile shield project. This includes the leader of the People’s Voice Party of Turkey who has said that the
missile shield project could lead to World War III. [2]
From New Iron Curtain to Star Wars: The Militarization of Space
In regards to the Asiatic missile project, Australia has also been working with the U.S. and Japan. There is also a
drive to raise a missile shield in South Asia with India. This effectively means that Eurasia would be encircled by a
ring of missile systems.
This is also why Russia has been working closely with its allies in Kazakhstan, Belarus, and China on missile defences
and China has developed a missile system that can destroy US-NATO satellites.
The multi-layered U.S. and NATO global missile shield system is tied into to the militarization of space.
Mahdi Darius Nazemroaya is a Research Associate at the Centre for Research on Globalization (CRG).
NOTES
[1] Zbigniew Brzezinski, The Geostrategic Triad: Living with China, Europe, and Russia (Washington, D.C.: Center for Strategic and International Studies Press, November 3, 2000), p.29.
[2] Serkan Demirtaş, “NATO shield could cause World War III, Turkish party leader says”, Hürriyet Daily News and Economic Review, November 24, 2010.
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