Article from USA Today by Rand Paul.

Whether or not to expand NATO is a question that deserves debate. Would it help or hurt U.S. national security?

Does adding countries such as Albania and Montenegro increase our security or ensnare us in possible regional disputes? Are we willing to risk war with Russia by including countries that already are mired in military conflict with Russia?

To understand what NATO expansion does to our relations with Russia, one must at least be aware of Russia’s perspective. Such awareness does not mean we agree with their point of view, but rather that we are aware our actions lead to reactions, and that NATO expansion does not occur in a vacuum.

We once had robust and thoughtful debate in our country over diplomacy and our desire to avoid war. Both parties now tend to shake their fists and declare to our adversaries: “Take this sanction.” “Take this expansion of NATO.” “Take this travel restriction” — under the misguided notion our unilateral actions will lead to capitulation.

Read the entire article at USA Today.

Image Credit: By Gage Skidmore from Peoria, AZ, United States of America (Rand Paul) [CC BY-SA 2.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons