NATO’s Secretary General and the Use of Force: Willy Claes and the Air Strikes in Bosnia

Much has been written on the evolution of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) and its military actions in Bosnia in 1995. Very little research, however, examines the role of NATO’s political leader, the secretary general, in shaping this evolution, and more specifically, on Secretary General Willy Claes’ role in NATO’s military strikes in Bosnia. Using a new analytical leadership model, this research maintains that Claes played a critical role, especially within NATO’s North Atlantic Council and through his relations with NATO’s Supreme Allied Commander-Europe, to help the alliance succeed in Bosnia, and more generally, in helping NATO transform itself into an organization with new missions in transatlantic security.