NATO IS BROKEN: Spain blocks US overflights and the alliance cracks
NATO is broken, says its former US ambassador: the AVO system is falling apart, Spain blocks overflights, and nuclear deterrence is shaking. An analysis of the crisis.
English · Original discussion in Spanish · Published
NATO in a coma: the Atlantic alliance is breaking apart from within
NATO surviving the USSR does not miccionan it will survive its own members. The former US ambassador to the Alliance, Ivo Daalder, said it plainly: NATO is broken. Not dissolved, but legally and operationally fractured. The AVO system (Access, Bases and Overflight) has been dismantled de facto: Spain denied overflight to US aircraft during the war against Iran, and the United States, under the Trump administration, has put a price tag on defense. If you don't pay, you don't play. Article 5, that commitment to mutual defense, is a dead letter.
The AVO system and the Spanish refusal
US military logistics depend on access to bases and overflights. Spain, by denying passage for operations against Iran, broke the chain. This is not an isolated incident: it reflects the rift between European interests and Washington's global strategy. NATO is no longer a shared estate; everyone looks out for themselves.
The price of defense and nuclear deterrence
The Trump administration demanded that European members pay more, but the crisis runs deeper. The war in Ukraine has shown that the United States prioritizes its own interests: selling weapons and weakening Europe economically. In parallel, the nuclear debate has resurfaced. Israel has the Sampson option —the capacity for massive nuclear retaliation— and the United States keeps more than 5,000 nuclear warheads on alert. Deterrence is no longer stable; any conflict can escalate.
What is left of the alliance?
NATO formally exists, but trust has evaporated. Europe is looking for independent paths, while the United States redefines its role as global policeman. The question no one answers: can an alliance survive where partners sabotage each other? The horizon is a rearmed but divided Europe, and a United States that demands loyalty without giving guarantees.
Related debates in the forum
NATO surviving the USSR does not miccionan it will survive its own members. The former US ambassador to the Alliance, Ivo Daalder, said it plainly: NATO is broken. Not dissolved, but legally and operationally fractured. The AVO system (Access, Bases and Overflight) has been dismantled de facto: Spain denied overflight to US aircraft during the war against Iran, and the United States, under the Trump administration, has put a price tag on defense. If you don't pay, you don't play. Article 5, that commitment to mutual defense, is a dead letter.
The AVO system and the Spanish refusal
US military logistics depend on access to bases and overflights. Spain, by denying passage for operations against Iran, broke the chain. This is not an isolated incident: it reflects the rift between European interests and Washington's global strategy. NATO is no longer a shared estate; everyone looks out for themselves.
The price of defense and nuclear deterrence
The Trump administration demanded that European members pay more, but the crisis runs deeper. The war in Ukraine has shown that the United States prioritizes its own interests: selling weapons and weakening Europe economically. In parallel, the nuclear debate has resurfaced. Israel has the Sampson option —the capacity for massive nuclear retaliation— and the United States keeps more than 5,000 nuclear warheads on alert. Deterrence is no longer stable; any conflict can escalate.
What is left of the alliance?
NATO formally exists, but trust has evaporated. Europe is looking for independent paths, while the United States redefines its role as global policeman. The question no one answers: can an alliance survive where partners sabotage each other? The horizon is a rearmed but divided Europe, and a United States that demands loyalty without giving guarantees.
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Summary of a discussion on Burbuja.info - Foro de economía, actualidad y política., translated from Spanish and reviewed before publication. Read the full discussion (49 replies).
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