– NATO...Are Its Final Days Just Ahead
 

German defence minister knocks NATO
By Honor Mahony

German defence minister Peter Struck has criticised NATO saying it must become a stronger forum for political and strategic dialogue between transatlantic partners.

"That was certainly not the case very often in the last years", said Mr Struck. He said that while NATO had made progress with its military transformation, it had yet to place value on being more political.

Mr Struck made the comments before the think tank, the German Society for Foreign Policy, at an event looking at the challenges ahead for the alliance, according to German daily Süddeutsche.

The German politician went on to criticise the current structure of NATO and called for defence ministers in the transatlantic body to intensify political dialogue.

"The nodding through of pre-prepared communiqués or the reading out of pre-prepared statements should no longer be the central point", said Mr Struck adding that it is not conducive to substantial discussions and it makes both him and his colleagues unhappy.

This is not the first time a high-ranking German politican has criticised the 56-year old Alliance.

Earlier this year, Chancellor Gerhard Schröder caused political furore when he suggested in a speech that NATO risked becoming outdated and was "no longer the primary venue where transatlantic partners discuss and co-ordinate strategies".

At the time, he also proposed setting up a "high-ranking panel of independent figures" next year which would suggest improvements and called on a greater role for the EU.