It’s well past time for the United States to take a new look at our NATO membership and see if it really serves our best security interests.
NATO was formed in 1949 with the aim of containing Soviet expansion in Western Europe. The military premise of the alliance was that an attack on any member was an attack on all, and a collective response would deter war.
This worked out pretty well. Protected by our nuclear and conventional military power, Western Europe recovered and prospered. The Soviet Union collapsed.
Today, some 75 years after its founding with 12 member states, NATO has ballooned to over 30 members (with promise of more).
Keep in mind, an attack on any one member is an attack on all and obligates all to go to war.
Think about it. What sane person would risk nuclear war with Russia should it attack, say, Lithuania or Romania? Not me. By the way, our defense spending is more than double that of all other NATO members combined.
The war in Ukraine underscores the danger of getting needlessly involved in a war that has no bearing on our security. There are just too many actors and events in this tragedy beyond our control.
It is not our fight. It is a problem for Europe and they have the resources to deal with it if they have to. Currently, there are 27 countries in the European Union — with a population of some 450 million people and a 2022 GDP of about $17 trillion.
Europe can pay for their own security. Let them. We should get out of the NATO trap.
National security is more than just military power. A country must have a solvent government, educated citizens, health care, employment, secure energy and modern infrastructure — to name some of the important issues and challenges that must be faced.
Niles Pierce, Sandy
