The (Ex) Washington Realist

Over at Outside the Beltway, James Joyner gives a rundown on Rupert Murdoch's endorsement of expanding NATO to becoming a global alliance defined by shared values. The initial post, and the debate it is engendering, is worth reading.

One thing that I keep missing, however. Polling data or evidence that Japan, Australia or any other country envisioned as being part of Global NATO actually WANTS TO JOIN. I'll admit, I don't follow the Australian press religiously, but I haven't seen any sign that most Australians are clamoring to become part of the Alliance or to transform it.

Perhaps this doesn't matter; after all, the opinion polls showing most Ukrainians are right now opposed to or highly ambivalent about NATO membership are deemed to be irrelevant. But given that a new global NATO would impose burdens on these states that at present they don't have--after all, a flip side for Australia's participation in coalitions of the willing is that when it is NOT willing it is not bound to act--one would assume that there should be pretty large majorities that span the political spectrum in each of these states about the need, benefits and desirability of joining such an alliance.

The worse outcome, of course, would be for the U.S. to propose these measures and then to have no takers ...