Is NATO Still Relevant With The United States?

 

European Union Members

(Source: By SiBr4 -  https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=30352945)

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) was created in 1949 primarily to counter and curtail the foreseeable expansion and influence of the USSR (and then the Warsaw Pact Countries) in Europe after World War II.

The demise of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) in 1989 and the breakup of the Warsaw Pact countries, considered as the “A” list nations in terms of threats to the US national security interests, has caused the United States’ foreign policy on defense to pivot slowly and strategically to the Asia-Pacific and the Middle East, and with the current administration looking closely at China, North Korea, and Iran while still maintaining its radar on the USSR, now simply called as Russia.

As the saying goes in geopolitics, there are no permanent friends but only permanent interests. So, after the USSR’s disintegration, three former Soviet Republics, i.e., Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania, 11 Warsaw Pact Countries, i.e., Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Bulgaria, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Albania, Croatia, Montenegro, and North Macedonia, as well as Finland (a former Soviet territory), Sweden (historically neutral), and Germany have changed their allegiances as Soviet satellite countries and became part of NATO.  

The political and military realignment of the former Soviet satellite countries into the Western coalition is akin to a tectonic shift, transforming communist/socialist states into democratic nations and thereby lessening the threat posed by Russia to the United States.

Again, there are no permanent friends but only permanent interests. The United States fought against the Italian, German, and Japanese forces in World War II. Now these three countries are trading partners and military allies of the Americans. Russians who fought alongside the Americans in World War II to defeat the German forces became the United States’ archenemy. Still, its political clout and military capabilities (except for the nuclear warheads) around the world have diminished.

According to open sources, over the past 75 years, since NATO's creation, the United States has contributed an estimated $21.9 trillion to the alliance’s defense budget, significantly more than the 32 members. An estimated $36 billion was spent on direct protection of Europe, including troop presence and infrastructure, in 2018. What about the aid to Ukraine? As of 2025, the US government had appropriated approximately $187 billion to Ukraine to fund its fight against Russia, thereby lessening the logistical burden on the European Union members and NATO forces.

Right after World War II, the United States, through the Marshall Plan or the European Recovery Program, started an initiative to help 16 European countries get back on their feet and provided around $13.3 billion ( (equivalent to over $130 billion today) to “rebuild economies, prevent communist takeovers, and create strong markets for U.S. goods, offering funds for food, fuel, machinery, and technical assistance.” The Marshall Plan was a total success, given how Europe has become an economic powerhouse today.

The United States has done so much for the European Union and NATO, and with the deafening calls from the Europeans for the American Forces to leave their continent because of the Greenland issue, the Trump Administration must take the ingrates and anti-American peoples’ proposition seriously and let them protect their continent this time against Russia, China, Iran, and North Korea.

While the United States is funding trillions of dollars on the defense and security of Europe, it’s allowing the European Union members to concentrate and allocate their spending in building powerhouse economies like those in France, Germany, and the United Kingdom. The parasitism relationship between the United States and the European Union must stop. The Europeans can now handle the Russians in Ukraine without the United States' military aid and protection. Can they do it, really?

For the last time, there are no permanent friends but only permanent interests. Now, the Europeans consider the Americans as their enemies, while the United States’ national security interests have now shifted to the Western Hemisphere,  the Middle East, and the Asia-Pacific Region. The primary threat is no longer Russia but China. American allies such as Taiwan, South Korea, Japan, Australia, and the Philippines welcome the presence of US military forces in the region, forming alliances similar to NATO. There is no better time to move the US troops and military infrastructures from Europe to the Middle East, Asia, Latin America, and, of course, Greenland.   

By the way, Europeans are saying that there were about 1000 soldiers from the European Union who died in the United States' GWOT in Iraq and Afghanistan, so the Trump Administration must shut up and give up its interest in Greenland. Let me say this, though: around 250,000 American soldiers died in the European theater during World War II, trying to protect and liberate the continent from the war machines of Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini.

Yes, You Can Be A Published Author, Too!

(The spy novel Project GrandSlam & The Zhongguo Orchestra is rated Five-Star by the Readers’ Favorite.)

So, do you want to write a book? A full-length novel? I’m telling you it’s not an easy goal. But if you have discipline and perseverance, yes, you can be a published author, too.

Okay, let me tell you this to motivate you. It took me 15 years to finish my novel, Project GrandSlam & The Zhongguo Orchestra—ten years of daydreaming and five years of actual writing.

Yes, those ten lost years didn’t amount to anything except that they filled my dream basket with buts and ifs.  Doubts were my unwelcome visitors and later became my unwanted companions.  In those fledgling years, my enthusiasm for writing waned, and at times, a week passed by without even a single page to credit.  Unbelief led to procrastination.  I almost gave up on writing and thought of letting Project GrandSlam & The Zhongguo Orchestra die a natural death.  I prepared for its wake and was ready to mourn its passing.

You see, unlike other writers who pride themselves on a BA in English or an MFA in Creative Writing, I admit I have neither one of those coveted degrees.  Nevertheless, the dearth of writing skills didn’t discourage me from moving on; on the contrary, it bolstered me even more to work harder. Who Dares Wins, just like what the SAS motto says.

To hone my writing skills, I became a self-educated writer.  I read some "How to Write" articles online and borrowed reference materials from the library.  I also bought books on creative writing and slowly built myself a mini library.  I went further and subscribed to magazines like Writer’s Digest and Poets & Writers.  A writer must be a reader first!

Some of the books I read were How to Write a Thriller, Grammatically Correct, 38 Most Common Fiction Writing Mistakes, Rewrite Right, St. Martin's Guide to Writing, Writer to Writer, Self-Editing for Fiction Writers, Plot & Structure, and other self-help books.  I also read the works of some great novelists, such as Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Frederick Forsyth, Robert Ludlum, and Ken Follett.  Tom Clancy showed up later in my writing life.

If you want to improve your writing skills, you must study the great works of those master storytellers.

My manuscript didn't come out easily.  I juggled everything in life – family, full-time job, and church activities. Writing always showed up at the bottom of my schedule.  Especially during the times my son had out-of-state soccer tournaments! 

I got my solitude only when everyone at home (or at the hotel) was asleep.  My creative juices usually flowed from ten at night to one in the morning.  So, imagine it was hard for me to go to my real job the following morning, half-dead like a zombie.

The last two years of writing Project GrandSlam & The Zhongguo Orchestra were a grueling experience for me.  I felt like I’d sailed into the unknown depths of literary seas, fishing for elusive words that often escaped my convoluted mind.  It was an arduous struggle from the start, and more than anything else, the process tested my patience and sanity. Really.

My indomitable will compelled me to endure those difficult years.  And during these times, a small voice, which could have been from an angel, cajoled me relentlessly, saying, "You have a good story to share with the world, so don't give up." Well, that was my daughter.

So, I pressed on, and I worked harder than ever before. My creative thoughts flowed naturally this time.  I saw how my story metamorphosed from a lethargic draft to a promising manuscript.  Afterwards, I started forming Beta Readers—friends who’d provided critiques of my manuscript without getting any compensation. Bless their souls. The last year was nerve-racking for me, given all the writing and rewriting and editing, and everything that came in between that cycle.

Finally, my novel Project GrandSlam & The Zhongguo Orchestra came out, but not without experiencing the blood, sweat, and tears of writing.  Oh, the joy and pain of writing!

You see, some writers have natural flair, and their literary wells overflow with an abundance of words.  Those skilled ones could produce a novel in three months or even in one month! You heard about NaNoWriMo?  I really envy those gifted writers.  Me? I’m just an ordinary guy with two simple writing traits:  discipline and perseverance – two enviable qualities that helped me complete my spy novel, and two non-fiction books titled Creating the Department of Homeland Security: A Public Policy Process and Managing the Philippines’ War on Terror from 1969 to 2005: A Case Study in Public Administration.

Let me share with you some points to ponder from Andre Jute, the author of Reverse Negative.  In his book Writing a Thriller, he said, “A Nobel laureate told me that, within a six block radius of the pub we were in, there were a hundred better writers than either of us . . . The difference between us, as published writers, and them as unpublished writers . . . was merely that we sat down and wrote a page a day or ten pages a day . . . and they didn’t.”  He also said, “The writer’s greatest virtue is never to give up.  If you were born stubborn, obstinate, and plain pig-headed, you have a good start.”

So, do you really want to write a book and become a published author?  Well, the only thing that can stop you from achieving your goal is—You! Take this advice from an ESL author. I hope my story will motivate you to write if nothing else.  Quit dreaming and start writing! 

*The spy novel Project GrandSlam & The Zhongguo Orchestra is rated Five-Star by the Readers’ Favorite and available in paperback and eBook at Barnes & Noble, Amazon, and Rakuten Kobo.*

    

 

Since 1969, the Philippine government has been battling Communist Terrorists, yet it has not gained complete control of the security situation in the country in 2005. Considering the experiences gained in the long years of fighting terrorism, the police and the armed forces should have decimated the CPP/NPA and its Sparrow Unit and Alex Boncayao Brigade.  It could have successfully established peace and order throughout the nation, but the internal conditions during the period dictated otherwise.

The influx of foreign Islamists in Mindanao, like the Jemaah Islamiyah (JI), and their association with the local terror groups, such as the Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG), has aggravated the already combustible situation in the South.  Subsequently, their close collaboration has become a serious threat to national security. ASG’s operational ties with JI and the Al-Qaeda network developed stronger as time went by, with bombings in Metro Manila and other parts of the country as their signature accomplishments.

So, what kept the Philippine government from winning its War on Terror, considering its counter-terror infrastructure, anti-terror policies and programs, and seasoned police and military forces?  What served as obstacles to the War on Terror that forestalled strategic successes? How did the Executive, Legislative, and Judicial Branches miss the opportunity to collaborate in the War on Terror using the concepts and theories in public administration, as well as the utilization of the best practices in public governance?

The purpose of this case study is to analyze the anti-terrorism policies and programs of the Philippine government from 1969 to 2005 and examine why the governmental agencies responsible for enforcing them struggled to execute their mission, which consequently denied them complete victory.

This case study also focuses on the challenges faced by the Intelligence Community in its counter-terrorism operations. It presents how the system of governance hinders the Philippine government from achieving strategic success in the War on Terror.  Along this line, this book will examine how the prevailing culture in Philippine politics from 1969 to 2005 has impacted the intelligence operations against domestic and foreign terrorist groups.

: Available on eBook and Hard Copy. Order via amazon.com.