The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) was formed sixty years ago as a defensive alliance, in response to the threat the Soviet Union and, eventually, the Warsaw Pact in general posed to Western Europe. Today, neither of those entities exists, yet NATO stands supreme as the institution most able to guarantee the security of its members, and the stability of the greater Euro-Atlantic area as a whole. With looming demographic challenges in Europe and a resurgent Russia asserting itself once more, many European nations are seeking NATO membership as a means of enhancing their security. For the United States (US), these developments present two primary policy options: disengage from the alliance and allow European institutions to cope with European issues; or maintain active US involvement and enlarge the alliance.This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work was reproduced from the original artifact, and remains as true to the original work as possible. Therefore, you will see the original copyright references, library stamps (as most of these works have been housed in our most important libraries around the world), and other notations in the work.This work is in the public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work.As a reproduction of a historical artifact, this work may contain missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.
