NATO Military Chiefs Endorse Plan to Form ‘Rapid Reaction’ Crisis Force

NATO’s top military officers endorsed plans Friday for a new “rapid reaction” force that could move immediately to trouble spots in the West.

Gen. Colin L. Powell, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and other military chiefs of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization wound up a two-day meeting by supporting proposals to make their forces more adaptable to changing situations.

The proposals are central to a reorganization of NATO’s forces now that the Warsaw Pact is defunct and the Soviet military threat has faded.

“What we are aiming at is maximum flexibility,” said Norwegian Gen. Vigleik Eide, chairman of the alliance’s military committee.

At a news conference, Eide said the military chiefs also agreed to reduce the size of NATO’s forces from Cold War levels, but he gave few specifics. However, the United States announced Friday that it is closing dozens of bases at home and in Europe.

NATO officials believe there should be more emphasis on dealing with crisis situations--before they escalate into conflicts. “It appears that’s what the brush fires of the future are going to be,” one military source said.

The rapid reaction force would be targeted for crises within the alliance, which links 14 European countries, the United States and Canada. NATO sources said the force would draw on units from Europe, with U.S. air support.

According to the plan, which will go before NATO foreign ministers for approval next month, the new force would almost certainly be under British command, the sources added.