Abstract
Afghanistan, Iraq, Kosovo, and NATO (The North Atlantic Treaty Organization) is always in the news, and has remained so for 58 years. NATO refers to the organization, (the institutions and military capacities,) that was created by the North Atlantic Treaty, signed in April 1949 by 12 Occidental countries. In the context of the Cold War, this treaty aimed at protecting Europe from a Russian invasion. This goal may now seem a little anachronistic. The Cold War is over, and new threats, such as terrorism, are now emerging, that NATO has to challenge if it still wants to have a leading role in the international security game. In addition, the emergence of the European Union, and the creation, of the European Security and Defense Policy (ESDP) since 1998, makes many wonder if NATO and the EU are complementary, or if the co-existence of these two institutions is a waste of time and money, as they have the same objective: protecting the European territory. This leads us to study the evolutions has NATO gone through since its creation, and analyze if it has been able to adapt to these emerging and evolving challenges.
