United States chapter
Defend NATO · USA
U.S. leadership
Shiv Parihar
Chairman, Defend NATO USA
Shiv Parihar chairs Defend NATO's U.S. chapter and leads the development of its nationwide network for students, citizens, and professionals.
About Defend NATO
Built in America. Connected across the Atlantic.
Defend NATO is an independent American civic initiative bringing public participation, campus leadership, and professional expertise into the transatlantic conversation.
We make the alliance understandable, participatory, and durable beyond any single election or crisis.
Who we are
A bridge between everyday Americans and the transatlantic institutions that protect their security.
International relations can feel distant from daily life. We close that gap by giving students, citizens, and professionals practical ways to learn, organize, convene, and contribute.
Our work is nonpartisan and grounded in the democratic values of the North Atlantic community: individual liberty, rule of law, peaceful cooperation, and collective defense.
Leadership
U.S. leadership. International continuity.
Defend NATO is led in the United States by Shiv Parihar and remains connected to the wider international enlargement network initiated by Mag. Günther Fehlinger-Jahn.
International network
Vienna · Europe
Founder & international initiator
Mag. Günther Fehlinger-Jahn
Chairman, Austrian Committee for NATO Enlargement
Mag. Günther Fehlinger-Jahn is an Austrian economist and a long-standing advocate for European integration, transatlantic cooperation, and NATO enlargement.
He helped initiate the international network from which Defend NATO's American work developed and remains a central link between the U.S. chapter and its wider European mission.
Our structure
American initiative. International network.
United States
Defend NATO
Civic participation, college chapters, public education, and a professional policy and communications network.
International network
Austrian Committee for NATO Enlargement
The Vienna-based international connection for the wider work on Euro-Atlantic integration and enlargement.
Visit HQ ↗What guides us
Principles before politics.
01
Democratic self-government
Citizens should understand and shape the commitments made in their name.
02
Collective defense
Peace is protected by credible alliances and shared responsibility.
03
Transatlantic unity
The United States and Europe are strongest when they act together.
04
Responsible enlargement
The alliance should remain open to nations ready to uphold its obligations and values.
Help build the founding network