NATO’s Weakness Will Make Europe Stronger

A German blitzkrieg force in Poland symbolizes Europe’s new military direction.

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To half of the alliance, the Cold War is over. To the other half, it’s back on. Seventy percent of Poles say they view Russia has a major threat, according to a Pew poll published in June. For Germany, it was a little over half that.

This dissonance is at the core of NATO’s weakness. And it was exposed in last month’s Pew poll.

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Collective defense is at the heart of NATO, under its Article V. But in only two countries out of the eight surveyed, did a majority say they felt they should honor that commitment: the United States and Canada. In Poland and the United Kingdom, those in support fell only slightly short of a majority.