Atlantic Council

From Foreign Policy:  Perhaps the end of the Cold War was an opportune time to kill off NATO, but the Balkan crises of the 1990s and post-9/11 security challenges proved that the alliance was still needed. The same is true today. The alternative -- to replace NATO with an ad hoc ABCD alliance (America, Britain, Canada, and Denmark) -- may give the United States enough firepower for today's wars, but less of the legitimacy and flexibility that NATO offers. 

Of course NATO has to change, and Bacevich is right to point to the alliance's many deficiencies. In particular, greater European defense investments are needed if the United States is to remain committed to the alliance. Here the United States should advance, not sound the retreat. The EU's member states (even France and Britain) have lost and will never regain the ability to finance all the necessary capabilities by themselves. Only cooperation among Europeans can eliminate the massive waste associated with the duplication of resources by EU countries and help transform Europe's armed forces into modern militaries capable of contributing to global security. The U.S. administration should publicly support such efforts.  (graphic: Brussels Journal)