The North Atlantic Treaty Organization, the most successful alliance in history, faces a moment of immense peril and potentially dramatic change. Joel Hillison, a remarkable soldier and scholar, has stepped up to explain why NATO continues to be a terrific bargain for the United States and a pillar of the global order-as long as the United States continues to recognize its value. Highly recommended.

John Nagl, author of Learning to Eat Soup with a Knife: Counterinsurgency Lessons from Malaya and Vietnam

Hillison has written a powerful and memorable study of Transatlantic relations and explained why they are critical to US security and global stability. His clear and direct writing style distills a complex issue down to the essentials, and makes these accessible to a wide audience of readers. At a time when the value of alliances and international institutions is being questioned from many quarters, Joel Hillison reminds us why they matter, and why NATO in particular is critical to the ability of the US to meet the challenges of the 21st century.

Colonel (Retired) Robert E. Hamilton, Delphi Global Research Center, USA

An excellent and most readable book, giving a clear balanced argument supporting a pragmatic approach to sustain the defence and security of the western world. Hillison draws lessons, setting the circumstances of today in the context of the history of the transatlantic relationship. Strongly recommended, it should be read by at least practitioners, policy makers and their advisers on both sides of the Atlantic.

General Sir Rupert Smith, Former Deputy Supreme Allied Commander Europe 1998-2001