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November 9 marked the 30th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall, and the beginning of the end of the Cold War.
The conclusion that democracy, liberalism, and capitalism had won proved to be premature. As NATO celebrates its 70th anniversary this year, we are reminded not only of its contribution to bringing down the wall by containing the Soviet threat, but its continued utility in preserving peace, security and prosperity.
But less than a month out from the NATO allied leaders’ summit in London, the transatlantic alliance is confronting its greatest threat: from within, not without. For a change, though, it’s not U.S. President Donald Trump at the heart of the controversy, but French President Emmanuel Macron, who recently quipped that NATO is “brain dead,” and Turkish strongman Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
While its geo-strategic position makes it crucial to NATO, Turkey’s behaviour has long been problematic. Earlier this year, Turkey purchased the S-400 missile system from Russia, leading the United States to halt the sale of the F-35 combat aircraft to Turkey: The fear is that the S-400 will allow Russia to read the radar signature of the F-35.
Then, in his singular obsession with the apparent Kurdish threat, Turkey invaded a neighbouring country, in brazen violation of international law and the rules-based order NATO claims to defend. Mr. Erdogan’s actions in northern Syria are so corrosive to the alliance that Germany is now warming up to the idea of just the sort of internationally controlled security safe zone along the Turkish border that Mr. Erdogan has long advocated. However, Mr. Macron believes the Germans are mowing his lawn: he feels they are plagiarizing the idea of a safe zone, for which the French President likes to take credit.
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See Also:
(1) Poland and EU attack France for meddling in Europe’s key military alliance
