Although the recent NATO summit in Vilnius, Lithuania, was dominated by questions about expanding the alliance, a potentially more consequential shift saw the bloc adopt a new regional defense plan that promises a significantly increased presence — both permanent and rapidly deployable — in Eastern Europe.
What this new plan will look like in practice remains to be seen. But despite the plan’s goal of beefing up NATO’s regional force structure, the coming years offer an opportunity to place the alliance on a firmer and more sustainable footing. This will require a larger European contribution to collective defense, but also a clearer and more efficient division of labor between the U.S. and its allies. Somewhat ironically, the blueprint for such a division is perhaps most clearly seen in a NATO operation that is widely derided and often viewed as a failure.
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