Exactly, and now the USSR is no more so there is no need for NATO

And Putin's cancelling of elections, military buildups and crackdowns have you feeling just oh so snugly huh?

It will never be a great USSR again, so no one has to be afraid

You never know. There is no guarantee.
Despite the good show they put up, there is still a great Russia vs Western Europe rivalry. Russia wants to keep its influence over Eastern European countries, which is why recently in the Ukraine there was some "fishy" things going on regarding the poisoning of their newly elected president.

Russia hasn't become a country who's military might can be dismissed just because the Soviet Union is no more. It is still quite powerful indeed. The latest developments from Putin are very disturbing. No more can people elect their officials, a massive military buildup has commensed, and Putin has taken a very hard line with the rest of the world. Russia has gone from a country that nearly impeached Yeltsin to a country that now cannot remove Putin under any circumstance. That's what happens when a KGB colonel takes over the government.

The KGB is back and now it IS the government... crazy.

Originally Posted by Charge_7

That's what happens when a KGB colonel takes over the government.

Hehe...good one.

My opinion is that yes NATO is still necessary...for the reasons others have stated earlier.

To re-launch something like NATO could take too much time. You might as well keep it with the idea that it will be modified for a future mission when neccessary. It's MUCH easier to modify an existing organization than start from scratch and my hunch, and the hunch of most people who are reasonable, I think, will agree that Europe, US and Canada need each other.

That's what happens when a KGB colonel takes over the government.

Scary. I knew he was from KGB, but not a Colonel.....

US for the hammer and EU for the pen...and voila you have a perfectly functioning NATO... j/k