April 02, 2019

NATO Needs Solidarity for Its 70th Birthday

By Julianne Smith

NATO marks its 70th anniversary this week—a remarkable milestone for a military alliance made up of 29 (soon to be 30) separate member states. But the big commemoration, scheduled for April 3 and 4 in Washington, has faced trouble from the start.

Given U.S. President Donald Trump’s past behavior at NATO gatherings (last year, he called allies “delinquent”), the alliance wasn’t even sure hosting an anniversary summit was a good idea. Last fall, it wisely downgraded the event to the foreign minister level. No Trump, no drama, the thinking went. Unfortunately, even without Trump, the gathering is shaping up to be anything but a celebration. As policymakers in NATO capitals draft flowery speeches for their ministers, and caterers in Washington place their orders for just the right vintage of champagne, allies are making a series of decisions that are rapidly eroding alliance unity. Too few members today—the United States included—see a need to prioritize NATO solidarity. That’s weakening members’ collective hand against the alliance’s adversaries and casting a dark shadow over the 70th anniversary.

Read the full article in Foreign Policy.

More from CNAS

  • Podcast
    • April 11, 2022
    Inching Closer Toward NATO with Mika Aaltola and Anna Wieslander

    Will Finland and Sweden join NATO? Since Russia launched its unprovoked war of aggression against Ukraine in late February, European political and security dynamics have chang...

    By Andrea Kendall-Taylor, Jim Townsend, Mika Aaltola & Anna Wieslander

  • Podcast
    • April 6, 2022
    Orbán’s Grip On Power with Dan Kelemen

    What does Viktor Orbán’s win in Hungary mean for the future of Europe? On April 3rd, voters in Hungary went to the polls for national parliamentary elections. Despite efforts ...

    By Andrea Kendall-Taylor, Jim Townsend & Dan Kelemen

  • Podcast
    • February 3, 2022
    Flash Release: Christoph Heusgen Reacts to Evolving Ukraine Crisis

    Vladimir Putin recently spoke about Ukraine for the first time since December—a speech in which he conveyed mixed messages about his intentions. On the one hand, he noted that...

    By Christoph Heusgen

  • Podcast
    • July 2, 2021
    President Biden’s Trip to Europe, with Jeremy Shapiro and Amy Mackinnon

    What concrete outcomes were achieved during President Joe Biden’s recent trip to Europe? Jeremy Shapiro and Amy Mackinnon join Andrea Kendall-Taylor and Jim Townsend to discus...

    By Jeremy Shapiro, Amy MacKinnon, Andrea Kendall-Taylor & Jim Townsend

View All Reports View All Articles & Multimedia