ABSTRACT
Geographical factors make a cohesive defense on the southern flank difficult. The constraining geography combined with Greek-Turkish differences make mutual support among the combat areas extremely difficult. This chapter first presents the military balance in the Southern flank in three land theaters: Northern Greece/Turkish Thrace; Eastern Turkey; and Northern Italy. Virtually all postwar administrations in Rome have been strong supporters of NATO and of a strengthened capability in the south. Although Italy's role would be critical in a military crisis, Italian governments have declined to accept a larger role in southern region defense. The chapter also discusses the reliability of three Soviet allies: Bulgaria, Hungary, and Romania; the issue of reliability would affect Warsaw Pact force levels in a southern flank contingency. While the Soviet Union has invested heavily in military forces assigned to the southern region, NATO has not.
