NATO Today: Facing Challenges from the East and South, Fall 2014

The Euro-Atlantic security situation is more complicated than it has been since the end of the Cold War. There are major security challenges pressing in on Alliance territory across an arc from east to south, and those challenges risk spreading into NATO countries themselves. Particularly due to events in Ukraine, NATO is faced with its most difficult relationship with Russia since the end of the Cold War. NATO does not seek confrontation and poses no threat to Russia. NATO’s objective remains to encourage Russia to choose a path of cooperation and responsible behavior, to be a country that works within the international community to solve common problems. The situation to NATO’s south and southeast is no less dramatic. NATO’s core purpose is to defend Alliance territory and populations; NATO is reinforcing its defenses, stepping up cooperation with partners, and reaching out politically to meet these new challenges and carry out that mission.