NATO's Northern Front: Developments and Prospects

• Published in: Cooperation and Conflict
• Main Author: Zakheim, Dov S.
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: SAGE Publications 1982
• Subjects: Norway; North Cape
• Online Access: http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/001083678201700302; https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/001083678201700302

Beginning in the mid-1970s, a number of observers of the so-called Nordic balance began to draw attention to the growing imbalance in NATO and Warsaw Pact capabilities in the region. The U.S.-Norwegian prestocking arrangement was one NATO response to the limited warning time for a Soviet move to cut off the North Cape area. Whereas Norway, in conjunction with the United States, is currently in the midst of a major effort to restore the credibility of its northernmost defenses, Denmark has been amongst the most reluctant of Alliance members to increase its level of defense spending. Furthermore, Greenland's home rule represents another complication. Given Greenland's clear determination to go its own way in international economic affairs, it is important to assess whether it might do the same on defense matters. Greenland's importance to NATO is often overlooked but cannot be over stated. Finland's neutrality and Sweden's more forceful armed neutrality permit NATO to adopt a posture which does not impose upon Denmark and Norway the burden of hosting foreign troops upon their soil.