Former New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson—who's also served as Energy Secretary, US Ambassador to the UN, and a member of the House—was one of the panelists discussing NATO's future role in addressing 21st Century challenges during an event this week hosted by McBee Strategic at Wiley Rein.

The panel was rounded out by Henne Schuwer, Ambassador of the Netherlands to the United States; Rolandas Kriščiūnas, Ambassador of Lithuania to the United States; and Dr. Curtis Levinson, US Cyber Defense Adviser to NATO. The talk was moderated by McBee VP Will Dempster.

"I don’t think there’s a more important time than today to talk about NATO in the 21st century,” said Gov. Richardson. “I doubt very much that any policymakers who witnessed the collapse of the Soviet Union 25 years ago would have predicted the re-emergence of the Russian military threat to the security and sovereignty of our European allies today.”

The transnational terrorist threat posed by ISIS and the humanitarian tragedy stemming from the Syrian refugee crisis are other issues to which NATO is crucial, said Richardson. “Whether it’s through confronting the resurgent Russia or tackling the residual consequences of the Syrian civil war, NATO is not only relevant to our national security, it is essential to preserve it.”

Richardson also praised Wiley Rein strategic counsel Jim Slattery, who served in the House of Representatives for 12 years, saying that Jim was "instrumental in ending the war in Central America."