Defense and Security

Security Alliances

  • NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization)
    Assessing the Value of the NATO Alliance
    In his testimony before the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, CFR President Richard N. Haass argued that the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) continues to have substantial value to the United States. Takeaways: NATO continues to have substantial value. “The United States stays in and supports NATO as a favor not to Europeans but to itself. NATO membership is an act of strategic self-interest, not philanthropy." The United States cannot introduce uncertainty as to its commitment to NATO. “Any doubt as to U.S. reliability will only encourage aggression and increase the inclination of countries to accommodate themselves to a stronger neighbor.” “A failure to respond to clear aggression against any NATO member would effectively spell the end of NATO.” The United States needs to be prepared as well for the sort of “gray zone” aggression Russia has employed in eastern Ukraine. What is required is training along with arms and intelligence support so that those NATO members near Russia can cope with “Article 4 ½” challenges should they materialize. NATO membership for Ukraine or Georgia should be placed on hold. The United States and NATO should focus on meeting existing obligations before taking on new ones. NATO is part and parcel of the larger U.S.-European relationship. The overuse of tariffs and sanctions against the EU will set back U.S. economic and strategic interests alike. No one should assume European stability is permanent. To the contrary, the last seventy years are more an exception than the rule. It should be the objective of the United States to extend this exception until it becomes the rule. A strong NATO in the context of a robust U.S.-European relationship is the best way to do just that.
    Testimony by Richard Haass September 5, 2018
  • South Korea
    Is South Korea Pro-China and Anti-Japan? It’s Complicated.
    Sungtae (Jacky) Park is a research associate at the Council on Foreign Relations. The history of Korea’s relations with China and Japan going back to ancient times shows that Koreans have always had a complicated, yet pragmatic relationship with their neighbors, and recent South Korean public opinion polls on China and Japan, too, have been fluctuating depending on circumstances. Current social and geopolitical trends also seem to forecast improvement in Japan-South Korea relations and deterioration in China-South Korea relations. Miscalculating South Korea’s geopolitical orientation could lead to lesser support on the part of Americans for the U.S.-South Korea alliance, less solidarity on the part of Japanese with their South Korean quasi-allies, and further emboldening on the part of Chinese in the attempt to pry South Korea away from the United States. As the Korean Peninsula has historically been the center of geopolitical competition in Northeast Asia, a nuanced understanding of Seoul’s position and perception toward Beijing and Tokyo would help all relevant parties contribute to long-term strategic stability in the region. Read more on The National Interest.
    Blog Post by Guest Blogger for Asia Unbound August 2, 2018 Asia Unbound
  • NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization)
    See How Much You Know About NATO
    Take this quiz to test your knowledge of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, the military alliance underpinning U.S. global leadership.
    Quiz by CFR Staff July 31, 2018
  • Europe
    Trump’s Misguided Attack on European Unity
    Trump's antipathy toward the EU overlooks America’s enduring interest in a united Europe that can serve as one pillar of an open, rule-bound international system.
    Blog Post by Stewart M. Patrick July 10, 2018 The Internationalist
  • Europe
    Trump Goes to Europe
    President Trump goes to Europe this week. Its leaders are bracing for the impact.
    Article by James M. Goldgeier July 10, 2018 U.S. Foreign Policy Program
  • United States
    America First Policies Leave America Alone and Disadvantaged
    Trump's rebellion against the rules-based order may give the United States more freedom of action, but it undermines the ability of the United States to influence its own future in a global era.
    Blog Post by Terrence Mullan June 19, 2018 The Internationalist
  • Donald Trump
    Signals for the Indo-Pacific From Trump’s Summitry
    India, which still views U.S. foreign policy with some skepticism, is essential to the success of the "Free and Open Indo-Pacific" strategy. What will New Delhi conclude from the recent U.S. diplomacy on display?
    Blog Post by Alyssa Ayres June 12, 2018 Asia Unbound
  • Donald Trump
    The Ugly American: Trump Attends the G6+1 Summit
    In an op-ed recently published in the Hill, I write about how Trump’s abdication of American leadership has rendered the G7’s formal summit agenda irrelevant. The gathering of the G7 members in Quebec this weekend reveals how much damage President Donald Trump has done to the formerly united West. It is not unusual for G7 leaders to deviate from the formal summit agenda, or for global crises to render prepared talking points irrelevant. What is unheard of is for the United States, which has steered the G7 for decades, to play the skunk at the garden party. But that is precisely the role Trump has chosen, to the consternation of alienated U.S. allies. The president’s unilateral security decisions, protectionist policies, and climate denial have done the seemingly impossible task of pitting the United States against the rest of the West. Read the full op-ed here.
    Blog Post by Stewart M. Patrick June 8, 2018 The Internationalist
  • Southeast Asia
    ASEAN Centrality in Managing a Geopolitical Jigsaw Puzzle
    The tug-of-war between China and the United States, Australia, Japan, and India will define the geopolitical landscape of Asia and threatens to divide ASEAN.
    Blog Post by Guest Blogger for the Internationalist April 25, 2018 The Internationalist