How has NATO survived the Cold War

A detailed Summary of How has NATO survived the Cold War

The latter half of the twentieth century has been dominated by the Cold War and the actions and events surrounding it. During this period different alliances and treaties were formed and many of these were institutionalized. One such alliance was the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). This organization was set up by the Northern Atlantic Western Powers to combat the Eastern Soviet threat. Today however NATO still exists and plays an active role in international relations. The question asked then is why after the Soviet Threat has dispersed an organization that was set up with the sole purpose of defeating the Soviets, is still persisting.

NATO was formed on the 4th of April 1949 with an alliance of twelve independent nations committed to defence and security. Between 1952 and 1982 four more nations joined and three more in March 1999. The original alliance was formed with the purpose of stopping Soviet expansion in Europe, with the United States as the main driving force. With the collapse of the Soviet Union and the consequential end of the Cold War it may be asked why has NATO survived and still plays an active and influential role in European interstate politics.

NATO has a definite reason for still continuing

Walt argues that the higher the level of institutionalization there is the harder it becomes to break up an alliance. Mr. Ruhle calls this bureaucratic inertia. In a highly bureaucratic alliance there is a group of people who obviously don't want the alliance to break up. NATO is a good example of this as support stems from former NATO officials, defence intellectuals, military officers, journalists and policy analysts. All who have addressed the issues facing Euro-Atlantic cooperation and conflict. Coupled with this is that a highly institutionalized organization may indeed provide the necessary capabilities, that would be useful in the future. Especially in the area of cost. NATO can build on its foundations of cooperation began in the cold war and encourage continued relationships in the Contemporary International System.

There are other alliances than NATO that have become or are multi-purpose institutions. This can be seen through the EU, with its enlargement operation and its designs for Russia. Also the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) in defusing minority obstacles in Europe, overseeing elections in Bosnia and working with an agreement in Kosovo. NATO, according to Mr. Ruhle is however, unique as only it can offer coherency in bringing about these processes.

When two nations share common political and social values and objectives, an alliance may be easier to persist, even after the original rationale is gone. Karl Deutsch "argue

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Category: Politics