By Lance Simmens
For seven decades, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) has ensured that the security of its European member countries is inseparably linked to that of the North American member countries. It has ensured peace within its territory and its primary purpose is to operate under the idea of collective defense, meaning that an attack against one ally is considered as an attack against all.
Severely affected by the Cold War, which defined its first four decades, it has not only survived but grown since its inception in 1949, and today working with non-member countries and other organizations is considered to be one of NATO’s fundamental tasks. According to the U.S. State Department, “consensus and consultation are part of NATO’s DNA. All member countries are represented in the North Atlantic Council, where decisions are taken by consensus — meaning unanimously — expressing the collective will of all the nations.”
The continued existence of this effective organization has recently entered the political narrative leading up to the 2024 presidential election as the prospect of Donald Trump securing the Republican nomination becomes more and more likely. In Trump’s off-the-cuff remarks, seemingly with regard to support for Russian President Vladimir Putin’s distaste and disdain for NATO, he has opened the door to questioning the continued viability for the organization.
As reported by CNN, “Trump caused a transatlantic uproar by claiming that he had told the president of a ‘big’ NATO country that if that country didn’t pay its ‘bills,’ he would not protect the country from a Russian invasion and would even ‘encourage’ Russia ‘to do whatever the hell they want.’ Trump’s incendiary remarks contained a familiar false claim. His assertion about NATO allies supposedly having failed to pay ‘bills’ is not true.”
NATO member nations all make payments to cover the operating expenses of the organization, which was founded in the aftermath of World War II to help Western Europe counter the Soviet Union with help from Canada and the United States. But they don’t pay membership fees to remain in the alliance, so there’s no delinquency to speak of.
Countries do, however, commit to spending at least 2 percent of their gross domestic product (GDP) on defense each year, with the goal of ensuring the alliance’s military readiness and deterring any potential attacks. The commitment is a guideline, not a requirement, that has been in place for nearly two decades.
Tucker Carlson’s recent interview with Putin has also sparked serious concern over how deep into the soul of the GOP rejection may run, and similarly the recent passing of Putin critic Alexei Navalny, largely suspected due to assassination at the direction of Putin, raises serious questions as to the prospects for further authoritarian tendencies in an attack on key democratic principles that have shaped the U.S. government since inception of the Constitution. It is astonishingly short-sighted if not potentially disastrous to have useful idiots at the helm of one of two functional (a term I use skeptically) political parties in the United States, particularly in light of the long-standing protection that has been afforded to over 30 countries who currently are participants in NATO.
I had the honor of leading a delegation of mayors to a conference on federalism in Moscow in December 1991 at the invitation of Mikhail Gorbachev, the last leader of the Soviet Union, and Boris Yeltsin, the first popularly elected head of state in Russian history. The weeklong conference left us all with great hope that democratic principles would be incorporated into the Russian governmental system as the Soviet Union dissolved. Our dreams have been seriously undercut in the ensuing years as Putin has exercised a yearning to revert to his KGB ways. As Putin readies himself for a fifth term next month, the prospects for continuing authoritarian dictatorial rule appears certain.
It is astounding to witness the knee-bending and kissing of the ring that former President Trump lavishes upon Putin. The authoritarian tendencies that are seeking and receiving emulation towards strong dictators within the Grand Old Party are a direct attack upon everything that distinguishes our nation from others — namely, democracy. There is also discussion that Trump has offered a desire to abandon NATO altogether.
Our inability to even consider support for helping Ukraine weather the onslaught that superior firepower and ammunition are leveling at them currently while the Republican-led House of Representatives fiddles with a political calculus that is the very antithesis of everything our nation stands for simply plays into Putin’s hands. Cozying up to oligarchical figures such as Putin represents a despicable retreat from the liberty and freedom which represents the soul and spirit of our system of government. Dismantling NATO is like taking a sledge hammer to the foundation of our democratic ethos.
Lance Simmens is an independent columnist for Atascadero News / Paso Robles Press, he alongside Don Schmitz write a bi-weekly column on national topics from the perspective of their political leanings. You can forward any comments you have to editor@13starsmedia.com.