NATO has decided to offer partnership for peace memberships to Bosnia, Montenegro, and Serbia, joining another 20 countries in Europe, the Caucasus, and Central Asia that work with NATO countries in individual ways. NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer told reporters the decision is “a very important political step” primarily because it helps bring the “full region more fully into the Euro-Atlantic family.” He added, though, that the Alliance expects Bosnia and Serbia to “cooperate fully with the International Tribunal.”
The U.S. military is maintaining a beefed-up presence in the Middle East, including fighters and air defense assets, following the U.S. strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities June 22 and subsequent retaliation by the Iranians against Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar.
