Publication

This bulletin argues that NATO's Readiness Action Plan (RAP), which the Alliance adopted following Russia's annexation of Crimea in 2014, cannot guarantee Europe's collective defense. The reason is quite simple -- the rapid response units specified by the plan can’t provide a credible deterrence against a conventional surprise attack. Given this truth, Poland would like the RAP to serve merely as a first phase adjustment to the new security environment NATO faces. What's also needed is a genuine capacity for territorial defense and conventional deterrence.