George Friedman, Stratfor: If Romania won’t defend itself, no one will

Geopolitical specialist George Friedman, the chairman of global intelligence company Stratfor, believes that NATO, “which is in fact the U.S., because the rest of the allies lack the military force”, won’t engage in a direct war in Ukraine. He also thinks that all measures taken by the U.S. to consolidate NATO’s Eastern flank depend on Romania’s efforts to defend itself. “I think the question is <<What can you do to defend yourselves?>> Poland has made substantial steps. Turkey is a major military power in the region. We understand Romania’s history and why things are not yet as they should be, and we don’t expect miracles. But Romania must make a commitment for its own defense. Romania’s independence is not more important to us than it is for Romania,” said Friedman in an interview for Romanian newspaper Adevarul. He also explained that the U.S. will only bring more soldiers in Romania if Romania will invest more in its own military forces. He said that the U.S. support will be mainly technology and the second line of defense, if it gets to that, but Romania must provide the first line of defense. editor@romania-insider.com