The Integration of Azerbaijan into NATO

1. ISSUE. Provide the USEUCOM Commander an overview of Azerbaijan’s approach to the situation in the Caucasus Region.

The United States and the Soviet Union had fought together as allies against Nazi Germany during World War II. When the war had ended, the Soviet Union had maintained a large presence in much of Eastern and Central Europe. Communist governments, allied with the Soviet Union, were soon established within this region. Winston Churchill, who had served as British Prime Minister during World War II, had warned that an “iron curtain” divided Western and Eastern Europe. He was fearful communism would spread through war-torn Europe. The United States and the Soviet Union were now engaged in a new period of conflict, later known as the Cold War. The United States had provided assistance to Europe in an effort to contain Soviet

Although Montenegro recently acceded into NATO, not all Montenegrins agree with their government’s pro-Western stance either. In fact, a June 2016 poll showed a clear majority against NATO membership, and the Democratic Front opposition coalition calling for a referendum on the issue. Finally, Moscow does everything in its power to complicate the NATO accession process. If it is unable to keep Balkan nations neutral, its goal is to keep them in a limbo-like state. Before accession, countries are expected

NATO relies on stable political and economic conditions for members to meet their obligations. Several NATO countries are limited by economic development and national debt. In 2014, NATO Allies pledged to increase defense spending and meet the NATO 2% guidelines. (EUCOM Posture Statement, 16) Recent Russian manipulation of political and economic programs exploits this vulnerability and creates instability and weakens the NATO Alliance. (USEUCOM Theater Strategy, 3)

Generally, the United States approached the Soviet Union with two noteworthy and unchallengeable assumptions: to begin with, the suspicion of the consistent and inescapable threat of Soviet Military animosity; and, second, the presumption of the certainty of American military predominance. The first presumption led to the conclusion that arrangement with the Soviet Union on the premise of shared bargain – which is the main reason for genuine transactions’ – was futile or risky. The last two assumptions promoted the idea that arranging any form of negotiations was pointless and, likewise, perhaps ethnically wrong. Americans commonly see security in institutional terms: adapted by their own atypical

The transregional, multi-domain, and multi-functional (TMM) environment we face today requires strategic direction and guidance from the President (POTUS), Secretary of Defense (SecDef), and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (CJCS) to allow the Combatant Commander (CCDR) of the United States European Command (USEUCOM) to employ his Theater Campaign Plan (TCP) across the conflict continuum. In the following paragraphs, the above statement will be supported by the USEUCOM CCDR’s operational approach of developing broad strategic and operational concepts into specific mission tasks to show his TCP is linked to and supports U.S. national interests. To do so, examples of U.S. strategic guidance documents incorporated within the linkage will be presented. Lastly, a current engagement activity that is linked to a U.S. national interest in Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Turkey (GAAT) will be discussed to express the range of military operations USEUCOM faces.

Sestanovich and Mcfaul rebuttal Mearsheimer’s thesis with their own by explaining that other contributing factors that have surrounded the crisis. They state many flaws in his writing and pose what they attribute to be the more likely possibilities. They point out the numerous interactions and cooperation that were present before the incident, such as signing the New Start treaty, supporting the UN Security Council sanctions against Iran, and other events. They identify Russia’s aggression has grown from within, due to their own internal political dynamics and not from NATO enlargement.

This study asserts the opposite view suggesting that even if Turkey had not joined the Korean War, it would be a member of NATO. Even though Turkey’s admission to NATO coincides with her participation to Korean War, it is an unfair remark to state that Turkey’s basic goal to send troops to Korea was joining the North Atlantic Treaty. Our study aims to reveal the reasons that made Turkish Government send a brigade level unit to Korea. Firstly, I will try to make clear the reasons of accession to NATO and then will try to present the motivation to send troops to Far

“The most frustrating and complex foreign policy issues in the world,” was a statement that was once used by past President Bill Clinton to describe foreign policy matters with the Balkans. This era of history is a classic example of America’s continuous battle between isolationism and internationalism. Given the circumstances that were occurring throughout the Balkans Region the United States really had no other option but to intervene. With America’s leadership and their power to influence the foreign policy that came to be established has made great changes in the Balkans, yet it brought burdens to the U.S as well. The Balkans has moved from the likes of war to reconciliation, from fragmentation to operative growth and from having a lack

With the proclaimed defeat of ISIS, current ties with Russia, and the seemingly inevitable defeat of rebel forces against the Assad Regime, the Iranian government has the opportunity to spread influence within the Central Command (CENTCOM) area of responsibility (AOR), specifically within Syria. Iran’s persistent influence across Iraq, Syria, and Lebanon via proxy forces has multiple diplomatic, economic, military, and ______ implications. These relationships and

This article from The Post and Courier discusses the possible emergence of another Cold War with Russia. Concerns regarding the emergence of such a war arose following a meeting that occurred in mid-April between Russia and NATO. During this meeting, Russia reportedly condemned the actions taken by NATO in order to strengthen its defenses in Eastern Europe by stating that they were “a threat to Russia.” Concern has also risen after Russia’s talk regarding the use of nuclear weapons. Additionally, Russia’s significant “improvements” to its military over the past three years have further increased fear regarding their future intentions. Defense Secretary Carter released a statement to the press regarding Russia’s

On the eve of Christmas in 1979, everybody must have been expecting something special at their home, particularly in western hemisphere. But, there was shocking surprise from the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) to the world. Eleven inches of black boots of the Soviet Union’s paratroops touched on the Afghan soil where civil war was on the verge. No one from the world leaders assumed that the USSR would invade Afghanistan due to its strategic insignificance. At world view, “the invasion was a watershed event, delegitimizing Soviet policy, and communism more generally, in the eyes of world public opinion. The voice outrage of western countries at the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan was seriously reproached by the UN which condemned the Soviet Union’s monstrous action.

NATO is currently violating the sovereignty of many states, which is considered the greatest breach of international law. Humanitarian interventions led by NATO are becoming big controversies as many individuals and states are wary of the fact that they do not support world peace. Many unruly interventions have taken place such as the war in Kosovo in 1998. The motives behind the war as well as the means used to conduct it will be focused on in this research paper. NATO-fought wars often tend to leave a large number of casualties, leaving the world horrified and one step further from world peace. In addition, it is important to study the rights and power of NATO to understand the implications of international law in politics and the worldwide realist paradigm we live in. This paper will help to further our understanding of the issue at hand, which is the overbearing intervention happening in the world and NATO’s role in controlling the power it holds. The use of NATO’s power will be critiqued and explained to finally show that it should not have the right to violate another state since it is violating international law, it is known for its atrocious acts during wars, such as unsolicited bombings, throughout history like in Afghanistan in 2001, and since its original purpose of creation is no longer valid, it is not a legitimate organization.

The study also revealed a corollary finding. Chapter 1 divulged that the Western Civilization is displaying a bias for oppositional responses. Since Antiquity, the West seems to see strategy as competitive in nature and often consider that the military is an inescapable means to resolve international issues. This bias contributes to explaining the surprising proposition that neither the European Union nor NATO seems willing to acknowledge that it develops a grand strategy. One can advance that the EU and NATO do so because they project their biases onto other actors and, therefore, fear that opponents as well as partners might interpret such acknowledgment as a move towards power politics. This bias deserves further scrutiny and substantiation and presents a potential lead to elaborate on this study. It might also offer an opportunity for rejuvenating the field of strategy. Indeed, this bias is the occasion for strategists to broaden their analytical spectrum as well as the variety of tools at their disposal. In particular, they have to acknowledge that the use of force or the threat of it might not be the only ways to coerce a third party, be it with a design of deterring or compelling it. For instance, in an international regime favoring cooperative relations, the threat of diminishing economic cooperation or of diplomatic sanctions, which can range from minor actions to complete isolation, might procure similar effects. The works of Robert Axelrod are remarkably

NATO encourages Russia to resume co-operation on the broad range of issues foreseen in the Founding Act and to engage actively in the EAPC and the Partnership for Peace. NATO also emphasizes that the further development of their co-operation depends on Russia's respect for international norms and obligations.