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This week’s R&D breaks down the future of North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).  Established in 1949 in the early stages of the Cold War, NATO was part of the U.S. containment strategy against the Soviet Union and was meant to deter Soviet aggression toward Western Europe.  With the Cold War now over, NATO has struggled to define a new mission for itself.  However, recent actions by Russia in the Ukraine may give NATO a renewed sense of purpose in the twenty-first century.