Continuum Books (www.continuumbooks.com) has announced publication of Permanent Alliance? NATO and the Transatlantic Bargain from Truman to Obama , a new book by Stanley R. Sloan. Sloan examines the six decades of NATO’s existence, concluding that the United States and its NATO partners have little choice but to sustain their alliance, in spite of its shortcomings and the difficult experience in Afghanistan. However, Sloan argues, the transatlantic bargain is in constant need of adaptation. He examines reforms that could make the alliance more effective in dealing with contemporary security challenges.

Sloan was born and raised in Montpelier, Vermont and now resides in Richmond, Vermont. After receiving an MIA degree from Columbia University’s School of International Affairs, he served as an intelligence officer in the US Air Force, analyzed European affairs in the Office of Current Intelligence of the Central Intelligence Agency, and managed intelligence research on Europe in the National Intelligence Office. He then served for 24 years as the leading expert on European security affairs at the Congressional Research Service, working closely with key Democratic and Republican leaders. Since retiring from his CRS position as the Senior Specialist in International Security Policy, he has continued his work as an independent analyst, commentator, writer and teacher from his home in Vermont.

Sloan’s latest book has won early praise. The highly-respected former Congressman Lee H. Hamilton, in the book’s foreword, notes: “Written in an elegant and accessible style, Stan Sloan tells the story of this alliance and examines its prospective future.” According to Representative Hamilton, Sloan’s argument on behalf of “revalidation and adaptation of the alliance is what makes this book so valuable.”

In a pre-publication review, Dr. Jamie Shea, one of Europe’s top experts on the alliance and an advisor to NATO Secretary Generals for several decades, observes that "Stanley Sloan has for many years been one of the most influential and authoritative analysts of the NATO Alliance.  In his new book “Permanent Alliance” he demonstrates once again his in-depth knowledge of NATO issues and his sound, balanced judgements of both the strengths and weaknesses of the Alliance….  This book should be at the top of the list for anyone who wants to understand today’s NATO." 

The leading historian of the alliance and director emeritus of the Lemnitzer Center at Kent State University, Professor Lawrence Kaplan, calls the book a “masterly re-examination of the sixty-year relationship between America and Europe….[which] should be welcomed by scholars and policymakers alike.”

Dr. Bram Boxhoorn, Director of the Netherlands Atlantic Association, observes “Sloan’s book is an outstanding study…. He is an original thinker, an experienced researcher and – clearly visible– loves the subject matter.  This study is a must both for teachers and students of political science and contemporary history."

Sloan continues to savor new opportunities to write, lecture and teach in his areas of expertise while enjoying life back in his home state. He is a Visiting Scholar at the Rohatyn Center for International Affairs at Middlebury College where, for the past six years, he has led courses on transatlantic relations and a seminar on the use of US power in Middlebury’s winter term. Sloan presents at professional conferences in the United States and Europe, is a Woodrow Wilson Visiting Fellow and a Fulbright Senior Specialist, has lectured dozens of times over the past two decades at the NATO College in Rome, where he is an Honorary Ancien, and frequently appears overseas as a guest speaker for the US Department of State’s Public Diplomacy Program.