Economists at the World Bank and International Monetary Fund must feel pretty lucky these days. They work for just about the only institutions set up in the aftermath of Word War II that aren't in the middle of an identity crisis. From Turtle Bay to Brussels, from Washington to Vienna, the decay of the economic and security infrastructure of the postwar world has accelerated in recent weeks. The bad news: As the legacy of the twentieth century recedes into the past, the only twenty-first century alternatives on offer come from an authoritarian surveillance state.
The United States military and partners from 19 countries are getting set to kick off a massive series of war drills in Ukraine amid rising threats from Iran and Russia, according to the Defense Department.
Seventy years ago on Thursday, the United States, Canada, and 10 western European countries created what became, and still remains, the most successful military alliance in history. The North Atlantic Treaty Organization deterred the Soviet Union from overtaking western Europe and, remarkably, won the Cold War without actually fighting the communist empire. Then, after the Berlin Wall fell, the alliance endured, using military force in the Balkans and the broader Middle East to stop Islamist terrorists and brutal, destabilizing authoritarians. All the while, NATO expanded from its original 12 member states to 29.
The Trump administration has made great strides in recent months to transform the cash-strapped and perpetually ailing North Atlantic Treaty Organization into a viable global military force that has the capabilities to confront Russia and other rogue regimes allied with terror forces.
NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg has said the Western military alliance must be prepared if Russia ignores calls to return to compliance with the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty, a cornerstone of arms control for decades.
Rep. Liz Cheney (R., Wyo.) announced her support for the Trump administration's decision to remove the United States from the Intermediate-Rang Nuclear Forces Treaty if Russia does not comply within 60 days, saying on Tuesday action must be taken to counter the "grave the threat from Russia."
BRUSSELS—Secretary of State Mike Pompeo brought the Trump administration's voice to a gathering of European leaders, offering a stinging criticism of the European order's capitulation to rogue nations such as Iran, China, and Russia.
The Washington Free Beacon's morning email lays out everything you need to know about the world of politics, foreign affairs, and
national security right in your inbox.
Economists at the World Bank and International Monetary Fund must feel pretty lucky these days. They work for just about the only institutions set up in the aftermath of Word War II that aren't in the middle of an identity crisis. From Turtle Bay to Brussels, from Washington to Vienna, the decay of the economic and security infrastructure of the postwar world has accelerated in recent weeks. The bad news: As the legacy of the twentieth century recedes into the past, the only twenty-first century alternatives on offer come from an authoritarian surveillance state. 
