Political Quotes

“But one of the most valuable resources to this debate is the studies undertaken in the past by the NATO staff, and which are still being undertaken. NATO cannot tell us with certainty what the costs are going to be. They are going to issue another report in the June timeframe, long after this debate will be concluded and this body will have made its decision. But in the current NATO studies--again, they are all classified, so I can't bring them out. But I think without breaching any classification, I ask my good friend: These studies are predicated on a 10-year cost analysis and timeframe, but it is a period of 10 years that NATO is looking at for these three nations and the subject of this accession. It is 10 years before they can bring the level of their military professionalism, the level of their military interoperability--and for those following the debate, I would say that is so we can talk on the same radio and have commonalty among our weapons systems, command and control, and the like--10 years before that level will be brought up to the standards that will be acceptable to our NATO forces.”