ABSTRACT
In the first 15 months after the end of the Cold War, there was an intense debate on both sides of the Atlantic about NATO's future. The Alliance's strategy of forward defence and flexible deterrence came under intense scrutiny. There were calls for a peace dividend, for a new co-operative relationship with the former Eastern European communist countries and for a new institutional framework for European security. During this period suggestions were put forward to give the Alliance an 'out-of-area' role. At first, these proposals did not find widespread support but by June 1991 the desires of some NATO member states for such a change was implicitly mentioned in a North Atlantic Council (NAC) communique. (NAC, 6-7 June 1991.) In May 1991 the NATO Military Committee (MC) had already announced a new force posture: the ACE Rapid Reaction Corps (ARRC). This announcement signalled that the alliance was reorienting itself to fight regional wars. In some policy-making circles, it was believed that the ARRC would have the capacity to be deployed in conflict outside the Alliance's immediate borders. The NATO MC, the NATO International Military Staff (IMS), the Secretary-General, British and US officials worked consciously towards giving the Alliance an out-of-area role. The position of other member states acted as a restraint on the development of the Alliance's new strategy.
