The NATO Alliance: Facing Contemporary Challenges

A report by Nicole al-Hajal, English adaptation by Nadine Sassine

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) was founded in 1949 in Washington, with Brussels chosen as its headquarters.

Initially, its purpose was to counter the Warsaw Pact and deter any Soviet threat to Europe after World War II, as well as to prevent the resurgence of "nationalistic currents in Europe" following the Nazi era. 

Over the years, it expanded to become an alliance of 32 countries, possessing military and political capabilities to deter any external threat to its member states.

The alliance, which was active during the Cold War, has come to the forefront again due to the Russian war on Ukraine. What are the main challenges it faces today?

Firstly, Russia, which concerns Europe. 

NATO has been a source of irritation for Vladimir Putin since its eastward expansion towards Russia after the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991. 
Putin was alarmed by NATO's expansion and did not hesitate to invade Ukraine. 

This invasion did not deter NATO, which worked to have both Sweden and Finland join, further provoking Putin. He even went so far as to threaten a third world war if the alliance continued its expansion policies eastward.

Secondly, Trump.

After 75 years since its founding, the specter of the US presidential candidate Donald Trump, who is close to Putin, looms over NATO's celebrations. 

Trump does not want to spend more money on NATO's defense or Ukraine, especially since the United States bears the most significant burden of NATO's expenses.

In this context, the Financial Times reported that NATO intends to establish a $100 billion fund to support Ukraine militarily over five years, aiming to protect it from what is termed "winds of political change" that could be unleashed by Trump's return to the White House.