British historian Paul Johnson offers Forbes readers a positive review of new U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch’s approach to the international soccer scandal.

The U.S. won’t make good on any shortfall in Europe’s contribution to the defense of the West. Obama’s line is that the U.S. already provides 70% of NATO’s military expenditure and won’t contribute any more. Thus, the West is falling back into a posture of 1930s-like appeasement.

There is, however, one exception to this response of retreat: U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch. She is a vigorous, persistent and single-minded woman, determined to uphold the one aspect of international order that she’s in a position to influence–the law.

For many years the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA), which supposedly supervises the conduct and legal morals of world football (soccer), has been a disgrace. Under its elderly administrator, Sepp Blatter, who has held four consecutive terms in office, FIFA has used its financial power to buy support from the 100 or so small nations that constitute the majority of its members to keep the Blatter machine in control.

After huge efforts by Attorney General Lynch, which took place over many years when she was U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, the Department of Justice has issued a series of indictments (with more to come) and has already arrested some of those named. Blatter’s initial reaction was to dismiss the clean-up attempt and set himself up for a fifth term. But because of hints that his own freedom could be in peril, he’s had second thoughts and resigned.

The corrupt machinery of FIFA now lies at the triumphant feet of Attorney General Lynch. Subsequent legal actions will doubtless take many years, as is the nature of international justice, but the ultimate result can’t be much in doubt.