The Nations of NATO: Shaping the Alliance's Relevance and Cohesion

Thierry Tardy

Jan 2023 · Highbridge Audio · Narrated by Paul Heitsch

About this audiobook

NATO stands at the forefront of the response to Russia's aggression in Ukraine. But how does NATO function? The Nations of NATO explores national policies within the Atlantic Alliance. It examines the foreign policies of sixteen allies, focusing on issues such as their strategic cultures, relationship with the US, contributions to NATO operations, levels of defense spending, domestic challenges, and decision-making processes. The recent crisis in Ukraine has without doubt reinvigorated NATO as a military alliance, but over the last decade it has also been affected by a number of challenges, both endogenous and exogenous. Whether the Alliance is threatened from the outside (Russia, terrorism, China) or is being undermined from within (intra-Alliance politics, diverging threat perceptions) has become an increasingly debated issue. The degree to which the Alliance can adapt to evolving threats has also been at stake. At the heart of these debates are NATO allies' policies, preferences, threat perceptions, and level of commitment to the shared enterprise. By analyzing the drivers, constraints, and specificities of relevant national policies, the volume offers an overview of NATO's contemporary functions and challenges, and constitutes an important source of data for future research and comparative analysis.

About the author

Paul Heitsch has been narrating audiobooks since 2011, after having worked as a pianist, composer, recording engineer, producer, and sound designer for many years. His work is often cited for the authenticity he brings to the narrative and characters he portrays, as well as his versatility, and clear, smooth delivery.

Thierry Tardy is director of the Research Division at the NATO Defense College, and Visiting Professor at the College of Europe. He has published seven books and more than 150 articles and book chapters on issues relating to European security, NATO and EU affairs, UN peacekeeping, and French security policy.