NATO

From June 24 to 25, heads of state and government gathered at the NATO Summit in The Hague, where they agreed on a new commitment to spend 5 percent of gross domestic product on defense by 2035. Check out our commentary, analysis, and events covering the convening, courtesy of our experts.

TRACKING NATO SPENDING


Trackers and Data Visualizations

Jun 20, 2025

NATO Defense Spending Tracker

By
Kristen Taylor, Julia Salabert

The Transatlantic Security Initiative’s NATO defense spending tracker delves into data and figures to analyze current defense spending trends.

Europe & Eurasia
NATO

FEATURED READING

FEATURED EVENTS

TUNE IN

Programs and initiatives

The Transatlantic Security Initiative, in the Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security, shapes and influences the debate on the greatest security challenges facing the North Atlantic Alliance and its key partners.

Content

New Atlanticist

Jul 3, 2012

Anchoring the Alliance: Poland, Italy, Spain, and Canada Stepping Up

By R. Nicholas Burns Damon Wilson and Jeffrey Lightfoot

For NATO to enjoy a more effective future, the Alliance’s other leading powers–Poland, Italy, Spain, and Canada—must be offered—and must be willing to earn—more responsibility within the Alliance.

NATO Security & Defense

New Atlanticist

Jun 29, 2012

Is NATO Deterring Itself?

By Julian Lindley-French

Is NATO deterring itself? A two day meeting here in a searingly hot Rome on NATO’s Deterrence and Defense Posture Review (DDPR) reaffirmed to me the deep transatlantic gulf over NATO’s twenty-first century role. Sadly, no answer will be found to NATO’s existential twenty-first century question: is the Alliance integral to America’s world view or […]

Europe & Eurasia NATO

New Atlanticist

Jun 27, 2012

South Asia’s New Regional Realities

By Ronak Desai

US Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta urged New Delhi to adopt a “more active role” in Afghanistan as NATO troops prepare to withdraw and championed an expansion of the US-India defense and security partnership. Speaking in the Indian capital during a visit there earlier this month, he characterized India as the “linchpin” of Washington’s strategic […]

Afghanistan India

New Atlanticist

Jun 26, 2012

In the United States-Pakistan Impasse the Winner Is Russia

By Sarwar Kashmeri

The continuing impasse between the United States and Pakistan over the accidental killing by American forces of 24 Pakistani soldiers last November means Pakistani territory is off-limits for the evacuation of American and NATO military equipment from Afghanistan.

Afghanistan NATO

New Atlanticist

Jun 26, 2012

Why NATO Won’t Go To War Over Syria Shooting Down Turkish Jet

By James Joyner

This week, the North Atlantic Council (NAC) will meet at Turkey’s request to discuss what NATO should do in response to Syria shooting down a Turkish F-4 last week. The short answer will almost certainly be: not much.

NATO Security & Defense
Admiral Boorsboom

Event Recap

Jun 19, 2012

Future Challenges of the Netherlands Navy in NATO

On June 19, the Atlantic Council hosted Vice Admiral Matthieu Borsboom, commander of the Royal Netherlands Navy, for a roundtable discussion on the future challenges of the Netherlands Navy in a NATO/European context.

NATO Security & Defense

New Atlanticist

Jun 14, 2012

The Future of NATO Lies in Central Europe?

By Jan Hamacek and Jakub Kulhanek

The popular belief holds that the future of NATO rests on the strength of the Euro-Atlantic bond, any weakening of which is interpreted as a potential death knell for the Alliance. The ongoing debate on the purported declining interest of the US in Europe in favor of the Asia-Pacific region clearly illustrates this strategic anxiety; […]

Europe & Eurasia NATO

New Atlanticist

Jun 14, 2012

Anchoring the Alliance: NATO Still Matters

By R. Nicholas Burns Damon Wilson and Jeffrey Lightfoot

It was the shot heard around the Alliance. In a hard-hitting farewell speech delivered in Brussels just days before his retirement as US Secretary of Defense on July 1, 2011, Robert Gates offered a tough-love message to America’s NATO allies. He warned that future US policymakers, and the American public, would lose interest in the […]

Europe & Eurasia NATO

New Atlanticist

Jun 13, 2012

Anchoring the Alliance: The United States Must Lead

By R. Nicholas Burns Damon Wilson and Jeffrey Lightfoot

Despite their importance, key European allies cannot sustain a vigorous and effective NATO without an involved and committed United States.

NATO Security & Defense

New Atlanticist

Jun 11, 2012

Negotiating a Solution to the Security Problem in Libya

By Karim Mezran

The security situation in Libya remains tenuous. In addition to the well publicized clashes between competing militias, there is continuous infiltration of armed elements from neighboring countries, especially Egypt, that range from mere criminal gangs to terrorist groups which cause tension and threats to the whole area.

Libya NATO

Experts