Czech press survey.

(From Czech News Agency)

PRAGUE, Dec 1 (CTK) - The battalion for the protection of NATO units against weapons of mass destruction, which will become part of the NATO Response Force, is to be ceremoniously inaugurated in Brussels today, Pavel Masa writes in Lidove noviny.

Czech Defence Minister Miroslav Kostelka is to take part in the ceremony as it was the Czech Republic which has been charged with forming the battalion. Many nice words will certainly be said about NATO's successes in strengthening allied cooperation and its ability to stand up to the challenges of the 21st century.

However, disputes with probably irritated U.S. Defense Secretary Rumsfeld can be expected in the same town and on the same day on how Europe wants to undermine NATO. The EU foreign ministers agreed in Naples at the weekend on the building of the EU independent military forces, the project which is disliked by many American politicians and experts.

French Foreign Minister Villepin was satisfied by the Naples "breakthrough," pointing out that building such military capacities was of key importance for Europe as it cannot be left without protection.

However, British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw, who certainly cannot be suspected of "anti-Americanism," was pleased too. According to him, the agreement has confirmed the leading role of NATO and the independent European forces will only be a supplement to NATO.

The development of the EU military forces is hampered by the unwillingness to pay for them. Each euro which will go, for instance, to the Liberec staff of the NATO chemical protection battalion will slightly undermine the French dream about the independent European defence. Straw is right and the current Washington's suspicion concerning the emancipation of its European allies is unnecessary. It will remain unnecessary at least until the time when the EU's spending on defence will be equal to that of the USA.