Before delving directly into the failures of NATO it is important to review some background. -
Jason JacobyNATO was created in 1948 as a means to counter the
SOVIET threat...not a Russian one. There is a fundamental and immense difference between the two...
It represented not only a threat regionally but to the US...
- After the Soviet collapse, NATO was shrunk to a fraction of itself. More emphasis was put on American protection.
Either NATO never saw Russia as a threat even after the invasion of Ukraine or it expected America to take care of that crisis.
Neither happened.
- NATO had warnings in the Balkin crisis. More after the split of Yugoslavia.
- NATO had warnings in Africa and the Middle East when Russia became active again
- NATO had warnings with it's active support of Iran
- NATO had warnings of its growing ties with China
- NATO had warnings of its modernization of its weapons, new technology such as hypersonic missiles, and nuclear cruise missiles ( a violation of SALT Treaties)
- NATO had warnings when Russia withdrew from non proliferation treaties and testing
- NATO had warnings in Chechnya
- NATO had warnings in the Georgia- Ossetia War.
- NATO had warnings of Russian troops, even actual combat in Syria ( no Russian troops had actively engaged in military action in the Middle East)
Other than Poland, no NATO member stepped up defense spending...
