Sigurd Neubauer, Foreign Affairs (USA)
The incoming Trump administration, which includes retired General James “Mad Dog” Mattis as Secretary of Defense, has sent a clear message to Russian President Vladimir Putin: do not equate Trump’s campaign promise to pursue détente with weakness. This should reassure Trump’s allies since the United States will need NATO to pursue such a strategy. And for this, the Trump administration needs to reform NATO—identifying ways to build on NATO’s unprecedented strengths as the strongest military alliance in history and improve on its shortcomings. Norway can help on both fronts, providing Washington with much needed naval deterrence against Russia and to be a model of proper burden sharing.