North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)

Many American officials have concluded that issues in Central and Eastern Europe have been fixed once and for all and that they can “check the box” and move on to other more pressing strategic issues. Relations have been so close that many on both sides assume that the region’s transatlantic orientation, as well as its stability and prosperity, would last forever. That view is premature.

Turkey’s relationship to NATO is edging toward the brink of collapse: caught in a miasma of Islamic radicalism, power-grabbing, and naïve foreign policy.

Under threat, Europe is at another crossroads. Whether NATO will help it find the right direction is an open question.

The power of the American presidency is like none other on earth. It is a certainty that Trump’s worst vices—his crudeness, his infantile attacks on critics, personal grudges, unchecked egotism—would be magnified the day he took office. Yes, try to imagine Trump with his finger on the nuclear button without trembling.

It can be easy to lose sight of the importance of the U.S. Navy patrolling waters around the world. However, from historical, economic, and security perspectives a strong, globally positioned Navy remains crucial to American prosperity and leadership.

The United States and NATO have zero tolerance for the use of nuclear weapons and would exact a punishing response against Russian leadership and/or military facilities ensuring there would be no second strike, to put it lightly. At least, this is what the U.S. government should make Waterford-crystal-clear.

Instead of viewing the U.S. military as the world’s policeman or as protecting free riders around the globe, we should understand why it is in America’s interests to maintain forces in Europe and ensure that NATO remains strong.

Many have rightly said Europe should have a more effective military force. However, Trump wrongly implies that bases in Germany do not serve any national interests, and he may even be wrong to imply that America has troops in Germany primarily to defend Europe.

The rise of right-wing extremism is one of the indicators that despite many successes on their road to democracy, Slovakia may still be in the tunnel Havel referred to over 20 years ago.