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At the beginning of the Cold War, the United States made a significant shift in national security policy with regard to alliances and coalition warfare. Prior to the mid-20th century, American policy had been to avoid becoming entangled in permanent alliances. Even temporary alliances were to be entered only under extraordinary circumstances.1 After circumstances brought the United States belatedly and reluctantly into two world wars, policymakers resolved to follow a different approach. Aiming simultaneously to co-opt defeated Axis powers and balance Soviet power, the United States entered into formal alliances in Europe and Asia. In the case of Europe, the North Atlantic Treaty of 1949 established the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) as the formal alliance. Collective defense within the framework of Article 51 of the United Nations Charter provided the basis for forming NATO.2 In the bi-polar Cold War world, formal alliances served to send a clear signal of unity in order to deter aggression. Formal alliances also encouraged higher standards in military effectiveness, enabled combined strategic planning, and provided better integration between the militaries of the allied nations.3 Despite the veneer of an alliance of equals, American hegemony of NATO developed.This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work was reproduced from the original artifact, and remains as true to the original work as possible. Therefore, you will see the original copyright references, library stamps (as most of these works have been housed in our most important libraries around the world), and other notations in the work.This work is in the public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work.As a reproduction of a historical artifact, this work may contain missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.
