European Aid

From the BBC:
"European Reassurance Initiative: Obama announces $1bn fund"

President Barack Obama has announced plans for a $1bn (£600m) fund to increase US military deployments to Europe, during a visit to Poland. Mr Obama, who will meet Nato leaders amid concerns over the Ukraine crisis, said the security of America's European allies was "sacrosanct".

In April, 150 US soldiers were sent to Poland for military exercises amid growing tensions with Russia. Mr Obama will also visit Belgium and France during his tour. Meanwhile, Nato defence ministers are set to meet in Brussels to discuss the long-term security implications of Russian actions over Ukraine. The Kremlin denies Western claims that it is supporting separatists in eastern Ukraine.

"Our commitment to Poland's security as well as the security of our allies in central and eastern Europe is a cornerstone of our own security and it is sacrosanct," Mr Obama said after inspecting a joint unit of US and Polish F-16 pilots.  Speaking at a news conference in Warsaw with Polish President Bronislaw Komorowski, Mr Obama warned Russia against provoking further tensions in Ukraine. He said Moscow should use its influence to call off separatists in Ukraine's east. Mr Obama reaffirmed the US commitment to Nato's principle of collective defence, announcing plans for a $1bn European Reassurance Initiative. The programme, which will fund additional US military rotations to Europe, will need congressional approval. The US would also "step up partnership" with countries such as Ukraine and Moldova, he added. In a statement, the White House said the European Reassurance Initiative would not "come at the expense of other defence priorities, such as our commitment to the Asia Pacific rebalance". Mr Obama's emphasis on relations with Asian nations has left some Eastern European leaders feeling neglected in recent years, the BBC's Adam Easton in Warsaw reports.  The crisis in Ukraine has been keenly felt in a region that underwent decades of dominance by Moscow, our correspondent adds.  In Belgium, Mr Obama is expected to urge Western leaders to reaffirm their united position on Ukraine at a G7 meeting of major industrial nations. The summit was originally to be held in Russia, but Western leaders decided to change the venue following Moscow's annexation of Crimea in March. In France, the US leader will take part in ceremonies to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the D-Day landings in Normandy. President Vladimir Putin is also invited, but the White House has already made it clear that the American and Russian leaders will not hold formal bilateral talks. Washington and its European allies have repeatedly urged Moscow to de-escalate tensions in eastern Ukraine, where fighting has continued between separatists and government troops.

^ It seems that whatever Obama first decides to do is the wrong move. He wanted to shift focus to Asia and build-up American's military presence there. That left Europe to fend for itself and it hasn't been able to  - as the Crimean Crisis and continued violence in eastern Ukraine shows. This new program is clearly Obama's way to save-face and back-tract on his original plans  - without ever admitting a mistake - which he never seems to do. Of course it should also be up to the European countries to do the majority of the protection but if we have learned anything from World War 1, World War 2  and the Cold War Europe needs the US to step-in and win. ^

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-27671691