Nato Point Paper Outline
Brief Background
After World War II ended, most of Western Europe had been reduced to ruin. In an effort to protect itself from possible future invasions, the Western European Union (WEU) was founded by the following countries: Britain, Belgium, France, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg. When the city of Berlin was blockaded in 1948 by the Soviet Union, members of the WEU decide that a wider foundation of cooperation is needed-one that involves the United States. The United States and WEU formed a new alliance called the North Atlantic Treaty Organization in 1949, in response to the Communist aggression in Eastern Europe, Korea, and Czechoslovakia.
In 1990, the reunification of East and West Germany began to splinter the once-solid Communist bloc of Eastern Europe. The Warsaw Pact (the Soviet equivalent of NATO) was officially disbanded in March 1991 and the Soviet Union collapsed in December of that year. Since that time, several former Soviet states have become NATO members and others are partner countries.
Current Issues within NATO
NATO’s original objective has been completed. The Alliance must now decide what its future role should be. There are several challenges facing NATO which are causing internal disagreements between members and threaten the future of the Alliance.
Issue 1: There are acute discrepancies between the United States’ and Europe’s contributions to NATO including economic and military technology.
• Economic contributions. The United States provides a greater financial contribution to NATO than many of the countries in Europe. Figures from the Congressional Budget Office report that the United States accounted for 25.2% of NATO’s common budget in 1999 (24). The second greatest contributor to NATO’s budget was Germany with 19.6%.
• Military technology. The United States provides greater technology for military conflicts than European nations. This became evident during the Kosovo air strikes in 1999. According to the
After World War II ended, most of Western Europe had been reduced to ruin. In an effort to protect itself from possible future invasions, the Western European Union (WEU) was founded by the following countries: Britain, Belgium, France, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg. When the city of Berlin was blockaded in 1948 by the Soviet Union, members of the WEU decide that a wider foundation of cooperation is needed-one that involves the United States. The United States and WEU formed a new alliance called the North Atlantic Treaty Organization in 1949, in response to the Communist aggression in Eastern Europe, Korea, and Czechoslovakia.
In 1990, the reunification of East and West Germany began to splinter the once-solid Communist bloc of Eastern Europe. The Warsaw Pact (the Soviet equivalent of NATO) was officially disbanded in March 1991 and the Soviet Union collapsed in December of that year. Since that time, several former Soviet states have become NATO members and others are partner countries.
Current Issues within NATO
NATO’s original objective has been completed. The Alliance must now decide what its future role should be. There are several challenges facing NATO which are causing internal disagreements between members and threaten the future of the Alliance.
Issue 1: There are acute discrepancies between the United States’ and Europe’s contributions to NATO including economic and military technology.
• Economic contributions. The United States provides a greater financial contribution to NATO than many of the countries in Europe. Figures from the Congressional Budget Office report that the United States accounted for 25.2% of NATO’s common budget in 1999 (24). The second greatest contributor to NATO’s budget was Germany with 19.6%.
• Military technology. The United States provides greater technology for military conflicts than European nations. This became evident during the Kosovo air strikes in 1999. According to the