Lesson from My Greek Vacation: The Delian League and the Danger of A Transaction Approach to Alliances

This is a photo I took last week on the Greek island of Delos, an important spiritual center in classical Greece. It was also home to the Delian League, a naval alliance created by Athens and its allies following their defeat of Persia for the second time. It struck me that the unfortunate history of the Delian League offers an important lesson about alliances that is very relevant today.

The Delian League began as a traditional alliance of independent city states, with Greek cities providing either ships or funds to the Delian League. While Athens was clearly the dominant power, decisions about the alliance were done by a congress of the allies in Delos and the funds were kept in Delos. The alliance was very successful in defeating the Persians and protecting the independence of the allies. Indeed, very soon, Persia was no longer a significant threat to the Greeks.

This is when the problems began. At this point, Athens apparently adopted an “Athens First” approach to the alliance and used its power to convert the Delian Alliance from an alliance into an Athenian Empire that transferred wealth from the “allies” to Athens. Athens insisted that allies provide only money, not ships, making Athens the sole naval power in the alliance. Athens then moved the League Treasury to Athens and used the League funds for its own purposes instead of those of the League members. Indeed, many of the buildings on the Athens Acropolis, including the Parthenon, were paid for with League funds. Athens used its dominant naval power to force the League members to do its will. When city states attempted to leave, Athens used military power to keep them (and their funds) in the alliance. Cities that rebelled, like Naxos and Thasos, were defeated and forced to tear down their city walls—making them forever defenseless against Athenian power. Athens also insisted that disputes between states all be resolved in Athens by courts composed solely of Athenian citizens. Athens no longer even pretended that the Delian League was an alliance—it referred to members of the Delian League as "all the cities Athens rules."

If we stop the story at this point, it would seem to support Trump’s “America First” approach to our closest alliance. Athens asserted it hegemonic power and got a beautiful Acropolis as a result. Just imagine what Trump could get by asserted American power in its alliance!

The story, however, did not end well for Athens. When it faced war with Sparta and its allies in the Peloponnesian War, members of the Delian League used the war as opportunity to rebel. They no longer viewed themselves as allies of Athens, but as subject cities. They acted accordingly. At one point, almost all of the Ionian islands revolted. Athens was able to put down the rebellion, but the effort to do so took resources away from the fight with Sparta. Ultimately, after 27 years of war, Athens was defeated by Sparta and Persia.

If the Delian League had remained as a true alliance, Athens would have had a strong alliance to deter or defeat Sparta. By converting the Alliance into an Empire, however, Athens lost the power of this alliance. Athens insistence on “Athens First” contributed to a war with Sparta and its ultimate defeat. Indeed, this ultimately led to Athens losing its independence altogether once Macedonia emerged as a power.

What is the lesson here? When it comes to alliances, power comes from a commitment to shared values and interests. Alliances are not the result of coercive power, but are instead made strong by cooperation and mutual respect. They recognize that the citizens of other countries are also strong patriots who will not look kindly on coercion by more powerful countries. Alliances exert military power, but are created and fostered by soft power.

When an alliance is converted into a tool of hegemony by one alliance member, this commitment to shared values and interests is lost. Denmark contributed military forces to our war in Afghanistan, and its casualties as a percentage of its population match those of the United States. It joined the fight as a NATO ally committed to the same interests and values as those of the U.S. Would it be similarly committed in the future if the U.S. takes aggressive action against Denmark to obtain Greenland? Almost certainly not. And that is true of our other allies as well. Our NATO allies contributed men and equipment to the fight in Afghanistan not because we forced them too, but because they wanted to support an ally.

For 76 years, the NATO alliance has effectively kept the peace in Europe and elsewhere in the world. This has been of tremendous benefit to the American people. Peace and stability in Europe has meant prosperity for Americans. A true “American First” policy is one that recognizes the power of cooperation and respect for our closest allies. We need to remember the lesson of the Delian League and make sure that we stay true to our shared values of interests, and not our own short-term narrow interests.