NATO positioned itself among rival security organizations to prove its continued relevance

Evidence

A constant theme of NATO officials at that time was that NATO needed to deepen its ties to the OSCE, UN, and WEU to ensure that NATO remain relevant to the broader security needs of its members. This stemmed from a desire to show that NATO indeed was relevant and had a specific role among the broader set of multilateral security international governmental organizations. There were, of course, limits as to how far members were willing to go in turning over important issues to organizations like the UN and OSCE, with their poor or unproven records in dealing with security issues, but they were willing to move in that direction. Most important here is that these efforts made use of NATO as the base from which to adjust to change. — Robert B. McCalla, NATO’s persistence after the cold war, 128

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: NATO reoriented itself after the Cold War and stayed valuable without a compelling threat — Robert B. McCalla, NATO’s persistence after the cold war, 29; NATO’s survival hinges on member states continuing to benefit from it — Robert B. McCalla, NATO’s persistence after the cold war, 101; NATO adapts tasks to persist, as organizational resources enable institutional survival. — Robert B. McCalla, NATO’s persistence after the cold war, 106 (+6 more)

Broader Connections

• NATO redefined the post-Soviet threat as indirect but real to justify persisting. #corroborates (0.82) — Robert B. McCalla, NATO’s persistence after the cold war, 86
• NATO’s institutionalization beyond mutual defense explains its persistence after its founding threat vanished. #expands (0.78) — Robert B. McCalla, NATO’s persistence after the cold war, 107
• NATO survived the cold war’s end due to institutionalization, not merely threats #expands (0.75) — Robert B. McCalla, NATO’s persistence after the cold war, 152
• Post-Cold War NATO planning redirected from East to southern threats #exemplifies (0.74)