NATO in the Crucible

During more than a decade of involvement in security operations in Afghanistan, the member nations of NATO experienced a tremendous amount of internal discord. With constant requests for additional forces and repeated (inaccurate) assurances that the insurgency was on its last legs, the coalition struggled to maintain an alliance. Member nations held different objectives and levels of commitment, and many were unwilling to take casualties. Meanwhile, external pressures ranging from global terrorism incidents to the financial crisis further tested their resolve. In NATO in the Crucible, Deborah L. Hanagan examines why NATO maintained cohesion despite these challenges. She explores the history and evolution of NATO, examining the facts that shaped the Afghanistan experience. And she goes deep inside the reality on the ground to show how the heat of battle, the drive to succeed, and the fear of failure allowed fifty nations, against all odds, to build trust and camaraderie. As one Spanish officer put it, "The flags don't matter when you are fighting ... Cohesion was something real, above all in difficult situations."