NATO: We will do more to fight terrorism – Deutsche Welle

One of US President Donald Trump'srepetitive complaints about NATO was that the military alliancewasn't addressing what he considers the major threat facing the world: terrorism. In an evolution that was already underway, but quickened underthe harsh glare from Washington, the alliance has repackagedsome of its activities and taken new steps to maximize its counterterrorism contributions.

Traditionally, counterterrorism was not in NATO's job description. But neither was figuring out how to deal with "little green men" [masked, unmarked, and green-cladsoliders in the 2014 Ukraine crisis] or internet trolls. The alliance is evolving to respond not only togenuine new and hybrid threats, but also topublicexpectations of its role as a security provider.

NATO's new role

That NATO must take on un-envisioned roles isjust the way it is, explained Bruno Lete, a transatlantic fellow with the German Marshall Fund's Brussels office.

"NATO member states recognize this is not NATO's core business," he said. "Nevertheless the reality of today's threats require the alliance to think more creatively [about]how it can engage in this field as well, so I think it's positive that NATO tries to play a helpful role in counterterrorism, even if its contribution concerns mainly indirect measures."

The alliance has indeed made a dramatic shift in just the last couple of years. The most obvious example is in its approach to the US-led Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS [the US government's favoredacronym for the "Islamic State"].

In 2014, when the multinational coalitionwas created, some NATO allies were uncomfortable with the mere fact that the alliance'sheadquarters would beused for a coalition meeting. Germany in particular insisted that there would be no NATO connection to the effort; no NATO logos allowed in any media coverage,which was kept minimal. NATO officials explained repeatedly in the following yearsthat there was no "need" to join the coalition itself since all allies already belonged.

Not only that, NATO would remind everyone thatit was fully engaged leadingthe ongoing counterterrorism effort known as thewar in Afghanistan. NATO troops and partners are still going head-to-head with the Taliban and the relatively newly arrived IS fighters, andmore troops are still needed.

But with the added pressure from the Trump administration bearing down on NATO, arguments against joining the coalition were ultimately outweighed by the practical and political advantages, andlast month the alliance finally slid into a seat of its own at the coalition table.

Speaking on Wednesday, the day beforea defense ministerial meetings, Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg touted the decision. "This not only sends a strong message of unity in the fight against terrorism," he said, "it also serves as a platform for practical cooperation. NATO is now fully integrated into the information-sharing and decision-making structures of the coalition." NATO had already agreed to a US request to make more use of the one AWACS aircraft allocated to coalition surveillance efforts.

Stoltenberg was also able to announce the activation of a new "Terrorism Intelligence Cell" within the recently created Intelligence Division that will help coordinate information and activities among allies. Other measures cited as counterterrorism contributions include expanded training of Iraqi forces andsoon-to-comeassistance for the UN-recognized Libyan government.

Daniel Keohane, a senior esearcher at the Center for Security Studies at ETH Zurich, says the steps are mostly cosmetic. "Part of this is NATO adapting to Trump, showing its worth on his priority issue of defeating ISIS," Keohane told DW. "It gives the new US president an easy political win to sell at home: 'see I got NATO to do more to fight ISIS'. But I don't yet see how this will greatly change how the allies are fighting ISIS outside of Europe."

Public insecurity about -- and US focus on -- the Islamic State has led NATO to include more counter-terrorism measures among its activities.

When it comes to fighting terrorism on its own territory, which is instinctively the priority of citizens in allied countries, the hurdles are also high for NATO to provide true added value. European governments are notoriously reluctant to share intelligence with each other, especially on issues as sensitive as terrorism, and do so almost exclusively bilaterally. Such issues remain in the hands of national governments, and within them, with police and security forces and the judicial branch.

Jan Techau, director of the Richard C. Holbrooke Forum for the Study of Diplomacy and Governance at the American Academy in Berlin, says the new counter-terrorism initiative are not entirely pointless but neither will they be particularly effective. His bigger point is that counter-terrorism should not be confused with NATO's core task of providing stability, nor should resources, including time and attention, be diverted to it.

"We should be debating other strategic issues including transatlantic solidarity," Techau told DW."We should not be discussing turning NATO into the primary agency for fighting terrorism,"

Techau says for NATO territory to truly be secure, innovations such as a new intelligence coordination cell inside alliance HQ won't help. "Transatlantic security ultimately is decided in the White House," he said. "And and so as long as there is lingering doubt about whether the person occupying the White House is fully dedicated to it or not, as long as that risk is still kind of looming in the background we do have at least a lingering crisis if not a real one."

Pew Research Center statistics from a poll taken this week shows high levels of doubt in the Trump Administration from NATO nations and beyond.

But perhaps theTrump pressure has helped the alliance in other ways. A separate Pew survey shows opinions of NATO have sharply risen on both sides of the Atlantic.

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NATO: We will do more to fight terrorism - Deutsche Welle