The future of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization should be shaped by strengthening its conventional and nuclear capabilities as well as bolstering dialogue with Russia, experts said Wednesday during a panel discussion at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.
The arrival of the Donald Trump administration has put NATO’s future “in doubt to some degree,” said Alexander Vershbow, distinguished fellow at the Atlantic Council’s Brent Scowcroft Center on International Security and former NATO deputy secretary general, alluding to Trump’s previous comments suggesting U.S. allies have not paid their fair share into the alliance.
Vershbow said NATO should continue its dialogue with Russia, as the relationship today is “prone to potential accidents.” This dialogue should include confidence-building and risk-reduction measures, he said, and could eventually lead to other forms of practical cooperation that aid Trump’s goal to improve relations with the country.
Meanwhile, Franklin Miller, principal of The Scowcroft Group, recommended that NATO strengthen its conventional capabilities in Europe to counter “Russian adventurism along the NATO-Russian border.” NATO should also “more seriously acknowledge the nuclear threat from Russia,” which includes the Kremlin’s ongoing nuclear modernization efforts as it develops new ICBMs, submarine-launched ballistic missiles, bombers, and other systems, Miller said.
He said NATO should also modernize its dual-capable aircraft and the B-61 nuclear gravity bomb, conduct realistic exercises to ensure theater-based nuclear forces can carry out their mission, and practice regional deployment of nuclear-capable aircraft between NATO countries.
The United States should continue modernization of its nuclear triad, Miller also said, which, along with the capabilities of the United Kingdom and France, underpins NATO’s deterrent power.
