U.S. Commander of NATO says Maritime Security is A Weak Link Against Terrorism
?Maritime security is a weak link in the war on terrorism that will one day be exploited by extremists unless action is taken,? said ADM. Johnson. He noted that 95 percent of world?s commercial cargos moved by ship, with some 11 million containers traveling the seas every day.
Admiral Johnson is based at NATO?s Afsouth headquarters in Naples, Italy. Afsouth runs a security mission code-named ?Active Endeavor? in the Mediterranean, which controls 8 naval vessels that monitor cargo flows in strategic locations.
Afsouth will be dissolved on April 2nd, and will be replaced by a more focused command structure which can carry out missions worldwide. NATO is establishing two command centers (one in Naples and the other in the Netherlands), which will run major overseas operations and deploy NATO?s fast response force to tackle global emergencies.
Admiral Johnson said that the more mobile we become, the more agility we build into our forces, the more relevant we are going to become in the global war on terrorism. ?Those who want to indulge in the business of terrorism will have to start considering the NATO equation before attacking us,? Johnson said.