Abstract

Investigation of NATO’s role in struggle with modern «hard» and «soft» threats conditioned by rising of level of tension and conflicts in the world. Kind’s changing of types of challenges and threats stimulates NATO to producing modern counteraction’s mechanisms and instruments. Alliance stays leading international security organization, which bases on cooperative approach, and provides global and regional security. In this article description of «soft» and «hard» power, «soft» and «hard» security, «smart power» are given. Defined, that by NATO was developed new concept of «smart defence», taking into consideration new challenges and threats of international security, which draws countries to maximal effectiveness of defence expenditure by more narrow defining priorities, to specializing and multilateral cooperation in the field of buying new weapons and military equipment. Proved, that in case of «hard» threats dominating and regional bipolarity, NATO will still as a main point of European cooperative security and defence, as it was at «cold war» period. Argued thesis, that following NATO’s initiatives concerning struggle with «hard» and «soft» threats should get an universal character, and also correspond with modern realities of military and policy spheres in the world. The elimination of old methods and procedures of counteraction of challenges and threats will provide higher level of effectiveness of different kinds of operations and missions.