Today there are no real threats in the world comparable to Hitler's Nazi Germany or Imperial Japan in WWII. The USSR was a totalitarian regime that ruled over countries in Eastern Europe. NATO was initiated by the US & Western European countries as a deterrent to the USSR invading W. Europe. It should have been dissolved once the USSR collapsed in 1991.Today we have contrived enemies not the type of regimes of the WWII era.

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Americans, most probably, could care less that NATO countries during last month's summit at the Hague committed to raising defense spending to 5% of GDP from the previous 2% target.

So why the increase?

Presumably it has to do with a perceived threat of an attack by Russia after the Ukraine conflict has ended.

Yet why would Russian President Putin consider attacking a NATO country? A Russian attack on a NATO country automatically obligates all its members to defend that country and join the fray against the attacker. It makes no sense.

Though Russia is the primary successor country after the demise of the USSR in 1991 it hasn't shown any expansion plans in Europe.

Let's get past the current war in Ukraine for a moment.

Today there are no real threats in the world comparable to Hitler's Nazi Germany or Imperial Japan in WWII.

The USSR was a totalitarian regime that ruled over countries in Eastern Europe. NATO was initiated by the US along with countries in western Europe to serve as a deterrent to the USSR invading western Europe. NATO+ should have been dissolved once the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991.

In light of the Soviet demise what are the other countries in the world today considered as "threats":

North Korea- A Communist totalitarian regime that developed a nuclear arsenal primarily as a deterrent against the US invading the country. It saw the US attack Saddam Hussein's Iraq in 2003 and they determined it would not happen to them. That was the regime's sole purpose for developing a nuclear weapon.

Iran-is a theocracy under the leadership of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. It is part of the NPT nuclear non-proliferation treaty which grants Iran the right to develop a peaceful nuclear program. It has no nuclear weapons.

Russia-As the primary successor to the Soviet Union and though a nuclear superpower has shown no designs to conquer Europe or to dominate the world. Russia has said it would use its nuclear arsenal only if the Russian state is threatened with extinction.

China-Also a nuclear weapons superpower has international economic development as its primary mission through its Belt and Road Initiative. It has a no first use nuclear weapons policy. It has shown no designs to conquer the world. Yet the US considers China as its primary adversary.

What we have today is contrived "enemies", not the totalitarian regimes of the WWII era that had designs for world domination.

That's the sad fact governing US defense spending of a $trillion dollars a year.

The last thing the US wants is peace in the world because there would no longer be a justification for the current level of defense spending.

The country with nuclear weapons not mentioned thus far in this piece is Israel. It has said what happened during the Holocaust committed by Hitler's Nazi regime murdering 6 million Jews won't ever happen again. Meaning if the Israeli regime was threatened with extinction it would fire its nuclear arsenal.

The other sad fact, primarily because of US support, Israel acts with impunity committing genocide against the Palestinians in Gaza and attacking Iran's nuclear facilities accusing it of developing nuclear weapons.

Lastly what it comes down to is this:

The US and Israel are the primary threats to world peace.

The US has not renounced the first use of nuclear weapons, while Israel (see above).

Lest we forget the US is the only country in the world to use nuclear weapons .

Authors Website: dglefc22733@aol.com

Authors Bio:
Retired. The author of "DECEIT AND EXCESS IN AMERICA, HOW THE MONEYED INTERESTS HAVE STOLEN AMERICA AND HOW WE CAN GET IT BACK", Authorhouse, 2009