What Is NATO and its Purpose Today?

[Boats]

What Is NATO? and its Purpose Today?
By Kimberly Amadeo -1-19-2017
RE: https://www.thebalance.com/nato-purp...iances-3306116

Definition: NATO (the North Atlantic Treaty Organization) is an alliance of 28 countries bordering the North Atlantic Ocean. It includes Canada, the United States, Turkey and most members of the European Union.

The United States contributes three-fourths of NATO's budget. Donald Trump said other NATO members should contribute more. He also accused it of being obsolete. He argued that it focuses on defending Europe against Russia instead of combating terrorism.


(Source: "Trump Rattles NATO With 'Obsolete' Blast," CNN, January 17, 2017.)

Purpose

NATO's mission is to protect the freedom of its members. For example, on July 8, 2016, NATO announced it would send up to 4,000 troops to the Baltic states and eastern Poland. It will increase air and sea patrols to shore up its eastern front after Russia's attack on Ukraine. (Source: "NATO Agrees to Reinforce the Baltic States," Reuters, July 8, 2016.)

That includes weapons of mass destruction, terrorism, and cyber attacks. On November 16, 2015, NATO responded to the terrorist attacks in Paris. It called for a unified approach with the European Union. That's because France did not invoke NATO's Article 5. That would be a formal declaration of war upon the Islamic state group. France preferred to launch air strikes on its own. Article 5 states"...an armed attack upon one...shall be considered an attack upon them all." (Source: "NATO Addresses European Defense Agency," NATO, November 16, 2015.

"Will NATO Respond to the Paris Attacks?" The Atlantic, November 15, 2015.)

The only time NATO invoked Article 5 was after the 9/11 terrorist attacks. It responded to U.S. requests for help in the war in Afghanistan. It took the lead from August 2003 to December 2014. At its peak, it deployed 130,000 troops.

NATO's protection does not extend to member's civil wars or internal coups. On July 15, 2016, the Turkish military announced it had seized control of the government in a coup. But Turkish President Recep Erdogan announced early on July 16 that the coup had failed. As a NATO member, Turkey would receive its allies' support in the case of an attack, but not a coup. (Source: "Turkey Coup: How Does NATO Respond?" NBC News, July 16, 2016.)

NATO's second purpose is to protect the stability of the region. In those cases, it would defend non-members. On August 28, 2014, NATO announced it had photos proving that Russia invaded Ukraine. Although Ukraine is not a member, it worked with NATO over the years. Russia's invasion of Ukraine threatened nearby NATO members. They worried they would be next because they were also former U.S.S.R. satellite countries.

As a result, NATO's September 2014 summit focused on Russia' aggression. President Putin vowed to create a "New Russia" out of Ukraine's eastern region. President Obama pledged to defend countries such as Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia.

(Source: "U.S. Vows NATO Defense of Baltics," The Wall Street Journal, September 4, 2014.)

NATO itself admits that "Peacekeeping has become at least as difficult as peacemaking." As a result, NATO is strengthening alliances throughout the world. In the age of globalization, transatlantic peace has become a worldwide effort. It extends beyond military might alone. (Source: "A Short History of NATO," North Atlantic Treaty Organization.)

Member Countries

NATO's 28 members are: Albania, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Turkey, United Kingdom and the United States.

Each member designates an ambassador to NATO. It supplies needed officials to serve on NATO committees. It will send the appropriate official to discuss NATO business. That includes its President, Prime Minister, Foreign Affairs Minister, or head of Defense.

On December 1, 2015, NATO announced its first expansion since 2009. It offered membership to Montenegro. Russia responded by calling the move a strategic threat to its national security. It worries that too many Balkan countries along its border have joined NATO. (Source: "NATO Prepares for Expansion," The Wall Street Journal, December 1, 2015.)

Alliances

NATO participates in three alliances. That expands its influence beyond its 28 member countries. The Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council allows partners a vehicle to become NATO members. It includes 23 non-NATO countries that support NATO's purpose. It began in 1991.

The Mediterranean Dialogue seeks to stabilize the Middle East. It non-NATO members include Algeria, Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Mauritania, Morocco, and Tunisia. It began in 1994.

The Istanbul Cooperation Initiative works for peace throughout the larger Middle East region. It includes four members of the Gulf Cooperation Council. They are Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates. It began in 2004.

NATO cooperates with eight other countries in joint security issues. There are five in Asia. They are Australia, Japan, Republic of Korea, Mongolia and New Zealand. There are two in the Middle East -- Afghanistan and Pakistan. (Source: "Partnerships," NATO.)

History

The founding members of NATO signed the North Atlantic Treaty on April 4, 1949. NATO's primary purpose was to defend member nations against troops in pro-communist countries. The United States also wanted to maintain a presence in Europe. It sought to prevent a resurgence of aggressive nationalism and foster political union. In this way, NATO made the European Union possible. (Source: "A Short History of NATO," NATO.)

NATO and the Cold War

During the Cold War, NATO's mission expanded to prevent nuclear war. After West Germany joined NATO, the Communist countries formed the Warsaw Pact alliance. That included the USSR, Bulgaria, Hungary, Romania, Poland, Czechoslovakia, and East Germany. In response, NATO adopted the "Massive Retaliation" policy. It promised to use nuclear weapons if the Pact attacked. NATO's deterrence policy allowed Europe to focus on economic development. It didn't have to build large conventional armies.

The Soviet Union continued to build its military presence. By the end of the Cold War, it was spending three times what the United States was with only one-third the economic power. When the Berlin Wall fell in 1989, it was due to economic as well as ideological reasons.

After the USSR dissolved in the late 1980s, NATO's relationship with Russia thawed. In 1997, they signed the NATO-Russia Founding Act to build bilateral cooperation. In 2002, they formed the NATO-Russia Council to partner on shared security issues.

The collapse of the USSR led to unrest in its former satellite states. NATO got involved when Yugoslavia's civil war became genocide. NATO's initial support of a United Nations naval embargo led to the enforcement of a no-fly zone. Violations then led to a few airstrikes until September 1999. That's when NATO conducted a nine-day air campaign that ended the war. By December of that year, NATO deployed a peace-keeping force of 60,000 soldiers. That ended in 2004 when NATO transferred this function to the European Union.

[Boats]

The role of NATO in today's world
By MARY T. CURTIN
RE: http://www.startribune.com/the-role-...rld/211628261/

The question of whether NATO is in crisis has been around for decades. There have been complaints since the start of the Afghanistan mission that allies were not doing their fair share. Some criticize Europeans’ lower overall defense spending as a sign that they want a free ride. Many Americans wonder why NATO intervened in Libya but has not in Syria.

At the same time, some policy thinkers, seeking to keep NATO relevant in the face of the U.S. policy “pivot” toward Asia, repeat worn ideas about broad geographic, political or even economic roles for the organization that our allies reject.

NATO plays an important role protecting the security that has enabled decades of European and North American peace and prosperity. But looking for an overly expansive role for it risks undermining its strength and lessening its value.

Many Americans — even elected officials and policymakers — don’t spend much time thinking about NATO, despite its importance. And unfortunately, many who do think about it approach issues from a NATO-centric and U.S.-centric view, distorting the conversation.

We should start by looking at our global security needs, asking what instruments best meet those needs, rather than looking at NATO and asking what role we might devise for it. We also must engage our allies in meaningful conversation about where NATO fits into their national priorities. Finally, we have to consider the outlook of NATO’s neighbors, friend and foe. NATO can remain a vital part of our international security apparatus only if we are careful about what we want it to be and do.

It is worth remembering where NATO started. After World War II, the United States intended to withdraw from Europe, but the European nations most afflicted by centuries of war wanted us to stay. We often think of NATO’s Cold War origins, but to the five countries that first signed a collective security agreement in 1948, then asked us to join, the concerns were as much about Germany as the Soviet Union.

NATO was conceived not just to protect Western European countries (and the United States and Canada) from outside attack, but also to create a sense of security that would enable peace and prosperity. NATO became an important part of Western Europe’s recovery and contributed to the fall of communism. But that is only part of the story.

For most Europeans, the story of the European Union is just as important. For all its current troubles, the E.U. has played a critical role promoting European economic growth and political stability — and peace. When former communist countries gained their freedom, they sought (and we encouraged) membership not just in NATO, but also in the E.U.

We and our European allies viewed integration into European economic and political structures as the best route to democracy. As the E.U. has grown, the United States has expanded its ties, from trade and investment to homeland security and regional peace-building. For us, as for the Europeans, NATO is not the only instrument for security or engagement in the region.

While Europeans may not be as NATO-centric as Americans in their thinking, opinion polls show higher support in some European countries than in the U.S. But many see NATO’s founding purposes as still the cornerstone of its existence — a concern for collective defense and a desire for a broad security umbrella.

There are differences among the allies, of course. Some countries still cast a wary eye toward Russia. Others harbor lingering concerns about Germany. Stability is elusive in parts of the Balkans and a rising concern across the Mediterranean. Many Europeans want NATO focused on its core regional tasks.

Europeans are wary of war for a reason — they are not far removed from the devastation of World War II. The structures that helped stop the cycle of war they had endured for centuries are worth preserving. Creating stability in Europe has been good for the United States as well, both economically and politically, and NATO still has a role in maintaining this.

Yes, NATO should adapt as threats change. But expansive notions about NATO that detract from its core mission have been rejected by our allies in the past and risk undermining the good in what we have — one valuable instrument for regional security, but not the core of our engagement in the world.