NATO Leaders Form Cohesive Front

President Obama made a firm appeal to European nations for military and financial support yesterday at the joint press conference in Strasbourg with French President Nicolas Sarkozy and mentioned possible threats abroad: “This is not an American mission, this is a NATO mission, this is an international mission.” Saturday’s main order of business is to spur NATO to help aid in the war against al-Qaeda. The leaders will begin their morning by walking over a footbridge across the Rhine in a symbol of unity. The endorsement of a new NATO chief is also on the agenda—while European powers back Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen, Turkey strongly opposes the choice because of the offensive caricatures of the Prophet Muhammad published in Danish newspapers in 2005.