China Pushes NATO Together: CNN

NATO members gathered to celebrate the alliance’s 70th anniversary in London, but relations seemed rough. NATO, a legacy of the Cold War, originally focused on confronting the Soviet Union and communism. However, with the collapse of the common enemy, NATO member states increasingly disagree about the meaning of its existence. Under President Donald Trump, the United States has questioned the alliance’s value. That has led to criticism, especially from French President Emmanuel Macron. He contends that anti-terrorism should remain a common goal for NATO and the US abrupt decision to pull troops out of northeast Syria rebuffed that priority. Despite disputes over the Middle East and climate change as priorities, NATO members largely agree about taking more action to resist China’s rising global influence. China presides over the world’s second largest economy and also ranks second on defense spending. Many countries are ambivalent about challenging China as a major trade partner. Still, the rising rival in the Pacific rival may replace the former Soviet Union in uniting NATO once again. – YaleGlobal

China Pushes NATO Together: CNN

Rising economic and security challenges from China could focus NATO attention, unifying the alliance and reducing bickering
James Griffiths
Friday, December 6, 2019

Read the article about NATO.

James Griffiths is a senior producer for CNN International. He joined CNN in 2015, and writes features and breaking news from across Asia, as well as in-depth analysis of Asian politics and human rights.

Country 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 2014 2016 2018 US 301,697 312,743 356,720 415,223 464,676 503,353 527,660 556,961 621,131 668,567 698,180 711,338 684,780 639,704 609,914 596,105 600,106 605,803 648,798 China 22,930 27,875 32,138 35,126 40,353 45,919 55,337 68,012 86,362 105,644 115,712 137,967 157,390 179,880 200,772 214,093 216,031 227,829 249,997 UK 35,255 35,332 39,660 46,943 53,970 55,152 57,483 65,986 65,619 57,915 58,083 60,270 58,496 56,862 59,183 53,862 48,119 46,433 49,997 France 33,814 33,277 36,404 45,917 53,007 52,909 54,516 60,595 66,009 66,884 61,782 64,601 60,035 62,417 63,614 55,342 57,358 60,417 63,800 Germany 28,150 27,425 29,333 35,055 38,008 38,054 38,092 42,552 48,081 47,470 46,256 48,140 46,471 45,931 46,103 39,813 41,579 45,382 49,471

Global security: The US has long led on defense spending, and China’s rapid rise during the 21st century alarms the West  (Source: SIPRI)

US 3.4% UK 2.1% France 1.8% Germany 1.4% China ~2%

Arbitrary goal? NATO members are expected to spend 2 percent of GDP on defense, but that target should also account for the health of economies, quality of defense investments and innovations - the 2019 percentages are based on estimates  (Source: NATO and China Power)

CNN
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