Present relevance of Nato

 At the height of the Cold War, the threat of Soviet invasion lurked constantly in the minds of Western Europeans. Their fears were not unfounded: a majority of the land that lay to the east of the “Iron Curtain” had become subjected to the direct influence of the Kremlin.The Kremlin’s coercive arm, the Red Army, stood at the ready along multiple European borders.in this background Nato was founded in 1949 .
NATO’s strategic objective, in the words of Lord Ismay, its first Secretary General, was “to keep the Russians out, the Americans in and the Germans down.”
However, once the U.S.S.R. withered away into the pages of global history, Many thinkers and Western leaders raised the question of the significance of Nato.
so what is the relevance of Nato after the demise of USSR--
America and West European states still consider Russia as an important military power and a threat and Moscow proved it to be true by some of its actions like cyber attack on Estonia, seizing the control of Georgian territory and annexing Crimea. Syrian war also added to this suspicion .
The growing strength of communist China also poses a threat to western countries ,Absence of Nato May give free lease to China.
A variety of new threats are emerging in today’s rapidly globalizing world. Examples include- terrorism, cyber terrorism, piracy on the high seas, and the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction . Altogether, these threats represent a legitimate danger, both directly and indirectly, to a vast majority of the NATO member states .
America wants to exercise indirect control over West European states through Nato .She has vast economic and commercial interest in Europe which may be adversely affected in absence of Nato .
The United States also benefits significantly from NATO’s logistics capabilities. Pontificating about grand strategies sounds impressive, but for military effectiveness and success, logistics capabilities are what really count.
To maintain their hold on third world countries some European nations need an umbrella of a big nation .” you need power to unilaterally impose your terms and conditions in economic and commercial fields.”
So we can say if NATO exists today precisely because all of its members wish it to exist .

By: Ankush Sharma