“Global Partnership”: A New Conflict Within NATO?

Throughout the last several months, the concept of “global partnership” has been causing headaches in the alliance. The United States has been working to implement an institutional framework within NATO in order to intensify global cooperation with the so-called “likeminded states” —states with a Western orientation. What stands behind the concept of a “global partnership”, what advantages can be attained through it, and which criticisms are in fact compelling?