President Obama is attending the NATO 60th anniversary summit this weekend and will be renewing ties while urging our skeptical European partners to support an increased role in fighting al-Qaeda in in Afghanistan. The BBC News reports:

President Barack Obama has urged better use of NATO resources in Afghanistan, saying al-Qaeda is a greater threat to Europe than to the US. Speaking before a NATO summit co-hosted by France and Germany, he said the US wanted to see a stronger Europe. However, NATO’s secretary general said members would be reluctant to send more troops if Afghanistan adopted a new law seen as violating the rights of women [...] He [Obama] said the US had been “arrogant” and “dismissive” towards its allies, while there was “insidious” anti-Americanism in Europe. He said these attitudes had to change. “I’ve come to Europe this week to renew our partnership - one in which America listens and learns from our friends and allies. But where our friends and allies bear their share of the burden,” he said.

As a founding member of the alliance, the U.S. has a special role in charting the future course for what many have called the most successful military alliance in history. The alliance is not only facing questions over membership and expansion but also core questions about the mission of the alliance. Should NATO remain primarily concerned with European security or should it become a global-NATO, taking on the role of world police? Carnegie expert Mark Medish argues in the International Herald Tribune that the alliance requires a radical rethink of its role in a world of changing security threats, while CFR expert Charles Kupchan suggests that that rather being a time of expansion, this should properly be a time of consolidation for the alliance.  President Obama will use this anniversary celebration to share his view of how he envisions the future of NATO.