The paper introduces an interesting discussion regarding of NATO’s partners. The alliance retains a strong bond with Kuwait, relying on this partnership within the framework of various operations in the area. Following years of cooperation and friendship, NATO and Kuwait signed the renewal of their official partnership program in 2019 (NATO, 2019). As per this program, the NATO-ICI regional center continues its functioning, addressing an array of topical issues in the Middle East. It remains open to all countries that partake in the Istanbul initiative, including the Gulf Cooperation Council, Saudi Arabia, and Oman (NATO, 2019). Through the functioning of the center, NATO is able to complete its strategic missions in the Middle East. More specifically, the Alliance’s presence in this area enables a stronger degree of supervision over the potentially hostile initiatives of Iran and various terrorist organizations that permeate the nations of the Middle East and attempt to saw chaos.
Therefore, Kuwait represents an excellent example of NATO’s strategic partnership in the Middle East. However, you raise an important point in regard to the economic diversification of the country. Until the present, Kuwait’s efforts in moving away from the oil-centered economy have been insufficient. Petroleum and gas products retain their central role in the country’s export trade, amounting for the majority of its gross domestic product. Such circumstances make Kuwait subject to oil and energy market crises that have been frequent in recent years. Their aftershocks continue to affect oil-dependent economies, damaging their resilience to new challenges. Such crises also contribute to unease and rebellions within the population, creating a favorable environment for terrorist and separatist movements, thus leading to instability. This way, the value of Kuwait as a strategic partner to NATO may become undermined, introducing another major reason for the soonest diversification efforts.
Germany is a locomotive of the European economy within the framework of the European Union, making its case a major determinant of the situation on the continent, in general. According to Clark (2021), “the German economy was by far the largest in Europe in 2020” with a gross domestic product of over 3.3 trillion euros. Therefore, this country remains in the vanguard of the European development, and any fluctuations in its economy will affect the entire Union. Within the NATO’s framework, Germany remains the key member of the alliance and a crucial partner for the United States. Its long-term participation in the Alliance’s strategic initiatives has become the key to stability in the European Union since the second half of the 20th century. Germany’s role in deterring the potential aggression of NATO’s competitors in Europe, namely Russia, has been of paramount importance. It is through the effective exchange of technology, intel, and human resources with Germany that NATO has been able to prevent major conflicts in the area.
However, as you correctly highlight, Germany’s economy and society have been under strong pressure in recent years. The ongoing conflicts in the Middle East have led to a surge in migration, as millions of people seek refuge in calm areas of the globe. For them, Germany has become one of the main destinations, as enabled by the country’s excellent level of development. This increase in migration has put a strain on the internal situation within the country’s society. Combined with an aging local population, the surge in the number of refugees risk creating a shortage of jobs. In addition, German citizens expect its government to regulate the migrations with a better efficacy. While social diversity is a generally positive tendency, the inadequate regulation of professional, economic, and social processes associated with migration may cause further dismay within both local population and migrants (Boswell & Badenhoop, 2021). This way, Germany’s immense potential as the pillar of NATO’s European security may become undermined, as well.
References
Boswell, C., & Badenhoop, C. (2021). “What isn’t in the files, isn’t in the world”: Understanding state ignorance of irregular migration in Germany and the United Kingdom. Governance: An International Journal of Policy, Administration, and Institutions, 34(3), 335–352. Web.
Clark, D. (2021). GDP of European countries in 2020. Statista. Web.
done in as little as 1 hour
NATO. (2019). NATO and Kuwait move their long-standing partnership forward. Web.