Extinderea NATO: Instrumente teoretice şi posibile scenarii de viitor
NATO Enlargement: Theory and Future Scenarios

Summary/Abstract: The text starts by exploring in a very detailed way the immensely influential contribution of Stephen M. Walt in studying the strategic reasons leading to formation of alliances. The author clearly states that neither balancing nor bandwagoning can be used to properly explain why and how NATO still goes on with its enlargement. The author lists several other mechanisms potentially able to explain in more flexible way the current evolution of NATO. In the next part of the study, the author presents and discusses – with a lot of details dealing mainly with military capabilities, but also with demographic and economic issues – two NATO enlargement scenarios: one of them dealing with three countries in Western Balkans (Croatia, Albania, FYROM), plus Georgia and Ukraine; and a second one, by far more ambitious (but also feasible only in the long run), promoted in 2007 by the influential American lawmaker Tom Lantos. He spoke about the fact that NATO has to “go global”, listing among potential very important future members countries as Israel, Australia, New Zealand and South Korea.

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