Russia: A Long View

Abstract

security prevailed. Chapter 9 deals with the changed Transatlantic relationship in the first postCold War decade. The American victory in the 1991 Gulf War against Saddam Hussein breathed new life into American leadership. Its military role in stopping conflicts in the former Yugoslav republics was accompanied by the expansion of NATO as well as a redefinition of its mission to include peacekeeping and out-of-area operations. Though the American military presence in Europe was sharply decreased, it was clear that the Europeans themselves were not yet prepared to handle their own security. President Clinton linked NATO expansion with the democratization of the formerly communist countries. Likewise, the prospect of admission to the European Union provided an incentive for political and economic reform in Eastern Europe. Lundestad’s characterization of the relationship as “stumbling to success” is on the mark. The tenth chapter, which concludes the book, begins with 9/11 and discusses the ongoing Transatlantic drift. American-European disagreements on Iraq and, to a lesser extent, on Afghanistan, have led some to question the future of the Transatlantic security relationship. The fundamental question, however, remains: how long will this “empire by invitation” last? As Lundestad correctly indicates in his important study, the answer to this will depend on future developments.