Criticism of the United Nations often centers on the paralysis of the Security Council, its divisions, vetoes, and geopolitical entanglements creating the impression of an ineffective international body. Yet this view overlooks a crucial truth: the UN is not merely a council chamber of the powerful, but a sprawling global architecture encompassing specialized agencies that play vital roles in culture, health, development, human rights, childhood protection, and other areas that deeply affect the lives of people worldwide.
By the same logic, dismissing NATO as merely a military alliance is an oversimplification that fails to grasp its evolving dimensions. While NATO is commonly portrayed in media discourse as a traditional military bloc, its actual structure and mission today go far beyond hard power. It is a multidimensional institution that blends military deterrence with diplomatic soft power, extending its tools into cyber security, institutional stability, and the promotion of Western values.
NATO in its current form is not the same organization that was founded in 1949. It has developed into a comprehensive security apparatus that addresses emerging threats such as cyberattacks and disinformation campaigns, establishing specialized units to protect the infrastructure of its member states. It also plays a critical role in training military and security institutions in non-member states to foster regional stability. Moreover, it promotes a political and cultural discourse aligned with Western democratic values, leveraging soft power in identity-based and ideological conflicts. NATO also engages with civil society organizations and academic institutions to construct a shared understanding of security, rights, and governance especially in fragile or post-conflict states.
Today, NATO actively adopts tools of “smart power” combining persuasion with deterrence, and partnership-building with strategic pressure. This transformation reflects a fundamental shift in its strategic posture one that positions the alliance not merely as a defender of borders, but as a shaper of the global geopolitical and cultural landscape.
Despite this strategic expansion, NATO now faces an unprecedented internal challenge: a shift in American political attitudes, personified by the rise of Donald Trump. Since his first term, Trump has questioned the relevance of NATO and threatened, explicitly or implicitly, to withdraw or drastically reduce the United States’ commitment. He has dealt multiple blows to the alliance, from casting doubt on Article 5, the cornerstone of NATO’s mutual defense principle, to repeatedly demanding increased financial contributions from member states, portraying NATO as a “bad deal” for the United States. His administration projected a unilateral worldview that runs counter to the spirit of collective security and international cooperation.
This shift does not merely destabilize the alliance; it undermines its normative foundations and pushes Europe toward an uneasy dilemma: either to build an independent defense capacity amid growing distrust toward Washington, or to submit to an increasingly unpredictable American leadership.
To ensure its continued relevance in a rapidly changing world, NATO must not only preserve its position but rebuild internal trust by redefining itself not as a purely military pact, but as a versatile security-political institution. This requires enhancing European strategic autonomy within the framework of the alliance, reducing overdependence on the United States without dismantling the transatlantic bond. Equally important is the need to update NATO’s threat perception to encompass emerging challenges that confront states and societies alike: from cyber warfare to climate change, from artificial intelligence to identity-based conflicts.
NATO must also reintroduce itself to both European and American publics not as an elitist organization preoccupied with geopolitical abstractions, but as a tangible source of protection for everyday life.
Dr Ramy Galal is an Egyptian senator, writer, and academic specializing in public management and cultural policies. He has authored studies on cultural diplomacy, the orange economy, and restructuring Egypt’s cultural institutions.
Galal holds a PHD degree from Alexandria University, a master’s degree from the University of London, and Diploma From the University of Chile.
He studied advanced programs in governance and leadership from King’s College London, Hertie School of Berlin, and Missouri State University, USA.
A former adviser and spokesperson for Egypt’s Ministry of Planning. He was also the spokesperson for the Egyptian Opposition Coalition. He represents Egypt at international forums and contributes to leading publications.
