Standing Firmly on a Precipice?: The Commitment of the United States to the NATO Alliance and the Fate of the Baltics
by Douglas V. Mastriano
Journal Article | October 24, 2016 - 5:12am
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Standing Firmly on a Precipice?: The Commitment of the United States to the NATO Alliance and the Fate of the Baltics
Douglas V. Mastriano
Image 1: Allied and Partner Nations in action, US Army LTC Douglas Mastriano conducting negotiations in Afghanistan, supported by Master Sergeant Gilbert Bosschaerts of Belgium on his right and Major Peter Ohlstenius of Sweden. NATO Photo
“There is only one thing worse than fighting with allies, and that is fighting without them”
- - Winston S. Churchill
The relevance of NATO was recently thrust onto the political scene in the United States were remarks were made regarding America’s commitment to the NATO Alliance. This has far reaching ramifications and no place is more greatly impacted by such a discourse than Baltics where weakness in Washington could spell the horrors of another Russian invasion and occupation. The story of NATO is rooted in a century of conflict. The Alliance emerged after two bloody World Wars. World War One, 1914-1918 witnessed the transformation of Europe, the Middle East and Africa at an appalling price in blood and treasure for people around the globe. Although entering the war late, the United States made a decisive contribution to making the Allied victory possible. A horrific price was paid by all of the lead nations in that war. Yet it was higher than it ought to have been due in large part to emerging technologies (i.e. tanks, chemical warfare, air power) and the failure of the Allies to accept unified command under one supreme leader. It took four painful years for the western nations to finally embrace the idea of a Supreme Allied Commander in the person of French Marechal Ferdinand Foch. It was Foch who led the Allies to victory in 1918.
http://smallwarsjournal.com/jrnl/art/standing-firmly-on-a-precipice-the-commitment-of-the-united-states-to-the-nato-alliance-and
