Constructive role is right choice for NATO

NATO will be 70 on April 4. It is a timely occasion for the world's largest military alliance to reflect on whether it has helped make the world a safer place, and whether it has a role to play today.

Born in the Cold War era and bearing the brunt of military confrontation between the United States and the former Soviet Union, NATO expanded eastward to take in more members after the Soviet Union's collapse and it now comprises 29 North American and European countries.

Yet rather than upholding its intended purpose of mutual defense in response to an attack by an external party, the world has been witness to its aggression as other NATO members have supported the United States in the many wars and military operations it has launched against a string of sovereign states under various excuses.