Ensign Benoit Gorgemans

Apr 2, 2024 | usni.org | Joshua Tallis |Eric Wertheim |German Navy |Ensign Benoit Gorgemans

As the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) marks its 75th anniversary, the alliance and its navies are entering a period of much-need revitalization. Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine has led to greater NATO cohesion and purpose than at any point since the end of the Cold War. As the allied powers confront a more adversarial Russia for the foreseeable future, the choices NATO navies are making today will shape allied commanders’ options for decades to come.

Sep 13, 2023 | usni.org | German Navy |William Hawkins |Ensign Benoit Gorgemans

On 4 April 2023, Finland made its mark in the global security sphere by officially becoming NATO’s 31st member. Finland’s arrival on the NATO stage bucked decades of official neutrality, a policy that began in 1948 as a balancing act attempting to avoid unnecessary confrontation with the Soviet Union, its neighbor to the east. Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine, however, convinced Finland—along with fellow Nordic state Sweden—to abandon neutrality and pursue membership in NATO.