NATO helped by new faces

Safe at last, safe at last! Thank Bill almighty, the Western World is safe at last! Well, at least it's just a little safer. Earlier this month, at President Clinton's prodding, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization invited three former communist bloc nations -- Poland, the Czech Republic and Hungary -- to join the Western military alliance. And although the decision to add these former foes to the ranks of NATO may seem as toothless an act as the Kellogg-Briand Pact of 1928, NATO's gobbling up of these historically tumultuous lands unleashes not only a stabilizing force throughout Europe; it provides widespread economic and political benefits to the United States as well. In the aftermath of World War II, Joseph Stalin and the Soviet Union dominated Eastern European politics. The defeat of Nazi Germany produced a power vacuum in the West, a void that victorious yet reeling Great Britain and France had no ability to fill. Across the Atlantic, the United States desperately wanted Europe to regain its status as a viable trading partner, but President Truman and the American people had no desire to see another militaristic hegemony emerge -- and after the war, Americans were even less eager to maintain a large military presence to preserve their interests. The times were ripe for a regional defense alliance, and Western Europe screamed for NATO. On April 4, 1949, 14 nations signed the North Atlantic Treaty, giving birth to NATO. With West Germany joining in 1955 and Spain in 1982, 16 nations stood to stem the tide of Soviet influence. By 1991, the Soviet Union had crumbled, and former Warsaw Pact nations descended into the dangerous political purgatory between dependent subjugation and autonomous democracy. Now in 1997, Russia wields only a fraction of the power it once did, and Poland, the Czech Republic and Hungary have blossomed into veritable democracies. Consequently, the new additions to NATO appear immaterial and merely symbolic. After all, with a weak Russia, why would the United States and Western Europe need to expand a defensive alliance? From a historical perspective, however, the admittance of these three nations further helps to blur the dividing line that Stalin drew through Europe 50 years ago. From an ethical angle, a decision by the North Atlantic Council not to admit a developing democracy would be nothing short of criminal. At this point, detractors often counter by asking why President Clinton argued so vehemently against admitting Romania and Slovakia, two growing democracies and former Warsaw Pact lands. Simply put, Romania and Slovakia aren't at the same point in their development as their more fortunate counterparts. NATO should wait until these nations can fend for themselves economically and politically. Additionally, the United States couldn't bear the economic brunt of funding such a massive level of NATO expansion. As it currently stands, the United States must pay an average of $200 million per year over the next 10 years to finance the three most recent NATO additions. While France's conservative President Jacques Chirac balked at having to foot a significantly smaller bill ($45 million) in part because Romania's affiliation became a dream deferred, the addition of Poland, the Czech Republic and Hungary will prove an economic boon to a fledgling European-American trade partnership. Eastern Europe will open up, and the United States will gradually recuperate the seemingly large investment and later profit. As trade corollaries, Western European nations such as France will reap the bounty as well. The potential addition of the Baltics -- especially the Ukraine -- can only sweeten the economic deal for all involved. And from a strategic standpoint, NATO expansion couldn't take place at a more appropriate time. With Asia and Africa making political strides, the West must struggle to adapt to a changing global playing field. By fortifying the alliance, Clinton hopes to secure America's place in this polarized global community. Specifically, NATO expansion helps the United States to cope economically with competition from Japan. With more solid Western trade partners, the United States increasingly has the option to circumvent Asia. And furthermore, the alliance's growth serves to protect the West from another political and economic rival -- China. Now that China has recovered economically burgeoning Hong Kong, China's own troubled economic situation suddenly becomes more manageable. In turn, China gains political influence. And the addition of Poland, the Czech Republic and Hungary to NATO serves to balance this growing influence on a global scale. Across Europe, NATO expansion has huge political and strategic implications as well. Advancing into Eastern Europe better allows NATO forces to police violence in the former Yugoslavia and to weed out Bosnian Serb war criminals. On the Russian front, the additions will ease Russia's assimilation into the European community. While Russian President Boris Yeltsin has expressed concerns about his nation's security accompanying NATO expansion, Russia will have the opportunity to regroup among a friendly and democratic economic environment. And when NATO invites the Baltics to join several years from now, not only will Denmark rest strategically secure and politically satisfied on its perch in northwest Europe, but political stability will surround a Russia in dire need of serenity. The United States will no doubt benefit from almost limitless free trade and a sphere of political influence approaching a level unseen since the days following the close of World War II. When Poland, the Czech Republic and Hungary formally join NATO in 1999, 50 years after the alliance's establishment, Europe's political environment will begin to crystallize, and the United States will reap global political and economic benefits. Overshadowing all, the stronger alliance will thwart internal military conflict and significantly deter war on a global level. As NATO expands, the world shrinks -- as does the risk of military conflict.

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