Medecins Sans Frontieres issued a press release today, protesting a statement made last week by NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen at the Strategic Concept Seminar in Helsinki. In his speech, Rasmussen called for closer collaboration between the civil and military sectors in crisis areas, such as Afghanistan. "In today's world, we have to realize that the military is no longer the complete answer--now it is just part of the answer. Hard power is of little use if it cannot be combined with soft power," said Rasmussen.
MSF objected strongly to this statement, reiterating the point made by Christophe Fournier, president of MSF International, in a speech to NATO last December: that the organization's humanitarian principle is deeply rooted in political neutrality, and the success of its operation depends on maintaining such neutrality. This sentiment and objection to Rasmussen's statement is shared by other NGOs as well.
Trust is too precious and volatile in areas of conflict, and it simply cannot afford to be tampered with by careless words like these.
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