NATO's triple challenge

NATO's future is again the subject of speculation and debate despite its ha ving fought a recent and apparently successful war in Kosovo. This article proposes that there are three aspects to this challenge. First, NATO is fac ing a series of dilemmas in its relations with non-members: how should it m anage relations with Russia, and with the applicants for membership! The au thors argue that NATO should seek to develop a consolidationist posture. Th e second challenge is that of developing an EU-NATO partnership in the ligh t of the Helsinki Headline Goals. This, it is proposed, can be developed th rough a division of labour. The third task, that of military restructuring, is overshadowed by the complexities of processing a working European milit ary structure. In conclusion the authors suggest that a strategy for the al liance, a key component of the Cold War, but subsequently lost, can be refa shioned from the above elements.