The end of the Cold War called into question NATO's relevance to the new global security environment. The Alliance's aspirations for a broader future security role are packaged in a structural initiative: the Combined Joint Task Force (CJTF). CJTF is designed to provide a mechanism for crisis response and peacekeeping operations conducted beyond Allied borders by variable coalitions of NATO members and associates. Also, CJTF is intended to facilitate better resource-sharing between the U.S. and the European Allies, permitting the Europeans to undertake some missions without direct U.S. involvement. Such arrangements will promote a distinct European Security and Defense Identity (ESDI) within the Alliance, as well as helping to satisfy the American desire to share more of the global security burden with Europe. Events in the former Yugoslavia have provided impetus for the Alliance's evolution, as well as creating a proving ground for its new initiatives. In the absence of a final agreement on CJTF, the Implementation Force (IFOR) in Bosnia is serving as a prototype. This thesis examines the CJTF concept's historical and strategic underpinnings, surveys the current state of the CJTF debate, and illustrates how NATO's experiences in the former Yugoslavia have contributed to the Alliance's post-Cold War renaissance.
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