ALLIANCES AND AMERICAN NATIONAL SECURITY

One of the greatest challenges facing the United
States today is the translation of its overwhelming
might into effective influence. Traditionally, the United
States has leveraged its power through bilateral and
multilateral alliances. However, the end of the Cold
War and the events of September 11, 2001, have led
some policymakers and analysts to question the value
of alliances in American foreign and defense policy.
This monograph by Dr. Elizabeth Sherwood-
Randall, one of the nation’s leading specialists on
alliance politics, makes the case that allies are more
important than ever to the achievement of U.S. national
security goals. She argues that existing American
alliances need to be modernized and strengthened,
and that new alliances should be established. She also
stresses the value of peacetime security cooperation,
which builds partnerships that may become alliances.
Dr. Sherwood-Randall describes the need to evolve the
concept of alliances to fit 21st century security threats
that may not be confined to a particular region, such
as proliferation of weapons of mass destruction or
pandemic disease, and recommends the networking of
key American alliance relationships into an “alliance
of alliances.”