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fort to provide an accurate, well-rounded account of
various key allies’ hard power capabilities.
In addition to the country-specific chapters, there
are also chapters that provide an overview of NATO
land, air, and maritime forces, and a chapter discussing
the possibilities and limitations of the attempt to
squeeze more capabilities of allied militaries through
“smart defense” and “pooling” initiatives.
This focus on “hard power” is not intended to
shortchange the utility of “soft power”—what Harvard
professor Joseph Nye has described as being the
ability to attract rather than coerce other states into
doing what you want. But, as we have seen in Eastern
Europe, the Middle East, and East Asia in recent years,
the absence of military capabilities or the strategy to
deploy them effectively can create regional dynamics
that invite instability or, worse, a vacuum that soft
power cannot fill by itself.
Having a fuller understanding of allied military
capabilities, plans, and strategies is becoming even
more important as the U.S. Government cuts its own
defense budget and force structure. For American
policymakers and strategists, knowing what relative
assistance allies and partners can provide now
and in the future, will only grow in importance. The
chapters that follow are intended to deepen that
understanding.
ENDNOTES - CHAPTER 1
1. Madeleine Albright, Interview on NBC-TV, The Today Show
with Matt Lauer, February 19, 1998, available from www.state.
gov/1997-2001-NOPDFS/statements/1998/980219a.html.
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