LONDON, Sept. 18 (UPI) -- NATO must take the middle ground in response to Russia's actions against Georgia, U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates said in London Thursday.
Different NATO members have suggested different courses of action to punish Russia after its incursion into Georgia, a country hoping to join NATO, the U.S. Defense Department said in a news release. Generally, Eastern European member countries want stronger action taken against Russia than do countries further west.
"I think there is a middle ground, in which I suggest where we do some prudent things that are consistent with the kinds of activities NATO has been engaged in for 60 years in terms of planning, in terms of exercises and so on," Gates said before the NATO meeting in London.
A measured response doesn't have to be a line in the sand or send unwanted signals, yet will send "some reassurances to allies in Eastern Europe and the Baltic (Sea) states that we're mindful of their concerns," Gates said.
"I think what has been important here is the unity of the United States and Europe in addressing what Russia has done," he said.
