North Atlantic Treaty Organization NATO

North Atlantic conformity brass section NATOThe North Atlantic pact brass (NATO) (or as they say in cut le Organisation du trait de lAtlantique Nord (OTAN)), began as a warfare machine bond of governments due to the North Atlantic Treaty ( 4 April 1949). From its line of descent NATO, with headquarters in Brussels, Belgium, has foc expendd on a structure cooperative abnegation. It translates this structure as having the constituent states responding to a joint and mutual refutal against onslaught by a non- NATO aggressor. From the master key 12 member states in that location are at a clock 28 neighborhoodicipants in this organization dedicated to property the attachment strong and vital in a changing orbit rove.Initi completelyy, NATO began as a political body, much pr wiz to discussion kind of than legal action. This changed when the Korean fight spur ruby the member states into action and they set up a war machine affirmation structure beneath the leade rship of two U.S. haughty neglecters to effectively deal with the occurrence that was brewing in Korea. As the premier(prenominal) NATO Secretary common, Lord Ismay, stated the organizations goal was to keep the Russians out, the the Statesns in, and the Germans d feature.4 The adhesions of WWII with the Russians had taken a beating as the battles became ideological with communism on one spatial relation and democracy as represented by the west and NATO was on the other. As for the Germans, thither was a basic distrust since they had been responsible for two gentleman wars and it was only tetrad years later their surrender that NATO was formed. Eventu exclusivelyy Germ some(prenominal)(prenominal)(prenominal) became and is a vital and full-fledged member of the organization.The bail bond had rough initial credibility issues, since the ever changing relationships in the midst of europiuman members and the US were in amalgamate (as always). at that commit was a s ignificant feat that NATO would be un fit to jut out together against a Soviet invasion. As a sign of its frigidness towards the alliance, and basically as a vote of no confidence, the French develop their own atomic arsenal and withdrew from NATOs gird bosoms structure in 1966 and hasnt rejoined that nerve of NATO since. In 1955, in retaliation to NATO, the Soviet Bloc countries started their own alliance The capital of Poland Pact, and thitherby created a common antipathy towards each alliance.In 1989, precipitated by the fall of the Berlin Wall and reunification of Ger some(prenominal), NATO focused its attention on the turmoil of the Balkan states and the troubles brewing in that region. At the same time NATO beat stronger and more(prenominal) dur open associations with their agent Warsaw Pact adversaries and succeeded so rise that kinda a few of these states joined the alliance among 1999 and 2004. On 1 April 2009, the NATO membership grew it its present 28 states with the entrance of Albania and Croatia into the alliance.5 Due to the 11 September, 2001 attacks against New York and Washington, NATO has refocused its mission to fight terrorism, instead of the Eastern block and re nominated itself to tack together new and more difficult confrontations in other regions of the military man. The alliance has appropriated troops to Afghanistan as well as trainers to Iraq in order to fulfill its pact obligations to a member state, in this slickness the coupled States, that has been attacked.As part of its ever evolving nature, NATO and the European Union (m either of whose members are homogeneouswise members of NATO) gestural a package of agreements called The Berlin Plus Agreement on 16 declination 2002. The crux of this agreement gives the EU the possibility to use NATO assets in flake it wants to act independently in an worldwide crisis, on the condition that NATO itself did non want to act-the so-called set of introductory refu sal.6 Thus if NATO, as the alliance refused to act in a crisis, the EU therefore has the option to respond.NATO members provide 70-plus% of the worlds defence spending.7 The linked States contri thates 43% the total military spending of the world8 with the united Kingdom, France, Germany, and Italy spending an additional 15%.9 The remaining alliance countries make up the remainder of the 12% that accounts for this considerable outlay of funds, materials and personnel, making NATO ready to meet any crisis.HistoryThe report of NATO is a storey of treaties that came in the waken of the Second World War. In 1948 he Treaty of Brussels, write by Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, France and the United Kingdom was the forerunner to the NATO agreement. The signing of this treaty coupled with the baneful Soviet Berlin Blockade gave rise to the wolframern European Unions Defence Organization that same year. 10 There was an understanding though that in order to frustrate the risi ng military power of the USSR, the United States had to be brought into the picture to change the west to have a solid counterbalance of power. This strategy precipitated a need for a new military alliance.Talks began at formerly and in less than a year, the North Atlantic treaty was signed between the 5 signatories of the Treaty of Brussels and the United States, Canada, Portugal, Italy, Norway, Denmark and Iceland. There was a lot of hostility regarding the treaty and it plane caused some Icelanders to advocate and enroll in a pro-neutrality, anti-membership riot in savet against 1949, just days before the final signatures on for April. The Parties of NATO agreed that an gird attack against one or more of them in Europe or North America shall be considered an attack against them all. Consequently they agree that, if such(prenominal) an fortify attack occurs, each of them, in exercise of the right of individual or incorporated self-defence ordain back up the Party or Pa rties being attacked, by the piece and in concert with the other Parties, such action as it deems necessary, including the use of armed force, to restore and maintain the warranter of the North Atlantic area. (http//www.nato.int/ cycle per second/en/natolive/official_texts_17120.htm )The phrase Such action as it deems necessary, including the use of armed force does not necessarily mean that other member states will respond with military action against the aggressor(s) has raised many questions over the years. segment states are obligated to respond to a crisis concerning the alliance or any one of its members, however these states have the foresweardom to choose how they will respond. (Hence Frances decision to withdraw from the military structure, as it never wants to commit its troops to a fight) This clause negates Article IV of the Treaty of Brussels that states that the members will wait onance the attacked member militarily. Further, the article limits the organizatio ns scope to Europe and North America, which explains why the Falklands War did not closure in NATO involvement. However, there was justification for the Afghanistan and Iraq wars involvement as the organizations that attacked the Member state, the US , were not national and merely located in another(prenominal) location.With NATO, some consistency of allied military terminology, procedures, and technology has been brought into existence. This has practically meant that European member countries adopting U.S. practices and techniques. There are about 1300 Standardization Agreements (STANAGs) codifying these standards. For example the 7.62-51 NATO rifle cartridge of the 1950s became the standard firearm cartridge among many NATO countries while Fabrique Nationale de Herstals FAL was NATO rifle in Europe and used until the advance(prenominal) 1990s. In addition to consistent firearms and rifles, signals became standardized, enabling any NATO agate linecraft to land at any NATO bas e without confusion. Even the NATO phonetic alphabet has made its beyond NATO into noncombatant use.Cold WarPerhaps the defining moment in early NATO was the outbreak of the Korean War in 1950. This police action became a critical test for the alliance as it confronted what appeared to be all commie countries surviveing together to destabilize the Koreas. This forced NATO into developing military plans.11 This war was also the precipitator to the nascent cold war between the West and the East and their ideological disparity.In 1952, NATO began to codify its requirements for a Long precondition Defence Plan. The Lisbon conference first-year suggested that there be 96 divisions dedicated to the alliance, however in 1953, this number was devolved to 35 divisions, with an increased dependency on atomic weaponry to make up the difference. There were 15 at the ready divisions located in Central Europe and Italy and Scandinavia hosted another ten. Another outcome of the Lisbon Confer ence was that the Chief Civilian federal agency of Secretary General of NATO was created (Baron Hastings Ismay was appointed). (12, 13) By September of 52, the first NATO exercises were held and routine Mainbrace brought 200 ships and over 50,000 troops and sailors to practice defending Norway and Denmark. It was a huge success.By the end of that first year, Greece and Turkey joined the alliance. This forced some very contentious negotiations, with the United States and Britain disputing as to the logistics of bringing these two countries into the command structure.14 every(prenominal) through the broil that was openly under discussion, covert trading operations were underway to set up a solid resistance in case of a successful Soviet invasion ( military operation Gladio). This resistance was original to the Western European Union, however it seemed more logical and effective to maneuver these plans and operations to NATO tick. Despite the disputes there were signs of unity a bonds began to grow among the contrary between NATOs armed forces so that the troops themselves were more cohesive. This included the NATO tiger Association and competitions such as the Canadian Army Trophy for tank car gunnery among the different units and countries.By 1954, the Soviet Union felt that it should become a part of NATO in order to keep the peace treaty in Europe.15 This did not sit well with the NATO member countries, as they feared that the real motivation of the Soviet Unions was weaken the alliance from at heart, sewing discord, so they rejected the proposal. However, despite foregoing declarations of keeping the Germans down, the introduction of West Germany into NATO on 9 whitethorn 1955 was describe as a decisive turning point in the history of our continent by Halvard Lange, Foreign Minister of Norway at the time.16 German military forces and manpower were a deciding detailor into allowing their former enemy into the alliance. Without the special sold iers fielding enough forces to resist a Soviet invasion17 would have been im manageable. The impression of this admission though was the Warsaw Pact, signed on 14 May 1955 (6 days later on) with the Soviet Union, Hungary, Czechoslovakia, Poland, Bulgaria, Romania, Albania, and East Germany as members. This formal response to Germanys admission into NATO , defined in no uncertain terms, the two sides of the Cold War.French withdrawalCharles de Gaulles presidency of France from 1958 caused a constant strain on the NATO alliance. De Gaulle current objections to the United States role in the organization was the basis of his never ceasing debate with NATO. He felt that the special relationship between the United States and the United Kingdom was undermining the alliance and he cute France to be the predominant member state.De Gaulle wrote to President Dwight D. Eisenhower and Prime Minister Harold Macmillan on 17 September 1958, where he basically demanded a tripartite directorate that would put France on an lucifer footing with the United States and the United Kingdom in NATO. He also stipulated that NATOs coverage be expanded cover French geographical areas, just about notably French Algeria, so that NATO could assist Frances counter-insurgency against Algerian rebels.De Gaulle did not like the response Eisenhower and Macmillan gave him so he began to pull away from a co-ordinated alliance and create independent defences for his country. He wanted to play some(prenominal)(prenominal) sides of the alliance in case East Germany invaded West Germany. He was unflinching to have a separate peace with the Eastern bloc and had no desire to involve France in a NATO-Warsaw Pact conflict.In 1959, despite being a signatory to the alliance, De Gaulle began his severing his allegiance to the alliance. In March 1959, France withdrew its Mediterranean Fleet from NATO command. In June 1959, de Gaulle proscribed international nuclear weapons on French soil. By this a ct, the United States began transferring military beamcraft out of France and returning control of all air force bases that NATO operated in France since 1950 to the French by 1967. De Gaulle wanted only his own military and nuclear arms on his own soil, despite his supposed solidarity to the alliance.In 1962, during the Cuban Missle Crisis de Gaulle showed unity with NATO, however later on he sustained his unrelenting determination of creating his own independent defence through the removal of Frances Atlantic and Channel fleets from the NATO command structure. Therefore it was no surprise to anyone within the alliance that by 1966, all French armed forces were removed from NATOs integrated military command, and all non-French NATO troops were asked to leave France. All his actions caused the Supreme home plate Allied Powers Europe (SHAPE) to move from Rocquencourt, near Paris, to Casteau, Belgium, by 16 October 1967. tour France remained a member of the alliance, its removal on the come out seemed to preclude any sort of committed defence of Europe from possible Communist attack. On the other hand, France did have forces stationed in the federal official country of Germany throughout the Cold War. A chain of clandestine agreements between U.S. and French officials, ( Lemnitzer-Ailleret Agreements) delineated the way French forces would fit together and return to NATOs command in case hostilities commenced during the Cold War. 18 Although on the surface France and DeGaulle had manipulated themselves into an independent there was nevertheless a way for France to unite and fight with NATO in case of war. It wasnt until 1995 that the French identify on the military structure of NATO began to change.DtenteNATO was able to keep from actual military appointees as an alliance throughout almost of the Cold War. The organization was prepared in case of such a scenario. In 1968, NATO argued that since the United States controlled nuclear weapons until a decisi on to go to war and NATOs own nuclear sharing arrangements with the US were no in trespass of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation treaty that was being signed. Since few states really knew what NATOs nuclear position actually was, whatever the alliance declaimed was considered truth and there was no challenge to their stance as far as controlling nuclear weapons was concerned.NATO countries officially defined two balancing aims of the Alliance on 30 May 1978. The first was to follow their initial directive and maintain security throughout the alliance. The second was to pursue dtente. The purpose of these two complementary color aims was to match the NATO defences to those of the Warsaw Pacts offensive capacity without inciting an extra arms race.In 1979, since the Warsaw Pact countries built up their nuclear capabilities in Europe, NATO okay the positionment of U.S. GLCM cruise missiles and Pershing II theatre nuclear weapons in Europe. These new warheads strengthen the western pos ition regarding nuclear disarmament. This Dual Track policy meant that peace was pursued on one hand while meeting weapons grade up on the other. Essentially it was a game of one-upmanship conducted by both sides. This occurred again in 1983-84, when NATO responded to the positioning of Warsaw Pact SS-20 medium-range missiles in Europe, by deploying modern Pershing II missiles. These missiles have the ability to hit military targets quite hard such as tank formations, should there be a war. These dual actions led to peace movement protests throughout Western Europe in light of the fact that the danger level ratcheted up in case peace talks were unsuccessful.EscalationMost of Europe was divided between the two alliances. Members of NATO were often shown in blue, with members of the Warsaw Pact shown in red on any maps depicting their allegiances.President Ronald Reagan of the United States was determined that the buildup of the stress between the US and USSR should be exacerbated heretofore more by having NATO deploy those Pershing II and cruise missiles in Western Europe, primarily West Germany. These Pershing II missiles are tactical nuclear weapons int finish to demand targets on the champaign in the event that the Soviets invaded West Germany. The Soviets fed into the Reagan paranoia and played into his deployment plans on 1 September 1983, when they shot down a South Korean passenger airliner when it crossed into Soviet airspace. Reagan characterized the shooting down of the plane a massacre. With world opinion on their side the U.S., galvanized support for the deployment of the missiles. This deployment stood in place until the later accords between Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev were reached and the hegemony of the Soviet Union began to dismantle..Gamesmanship in the membership was still round although during the late 1970s and early 80s there was some stagnancy. In 1974, when the Turks invaded Cyprus, Greece withdrew its forces from NATOs military command structure. finally though, in 1980, they were readmitted (Turkish cooperation was necessary) Finally in May 1982, Spain was able to join the alliance as its former dictator had died and the newly elected country was free to become part of NATO. Spain joined the alliance.In November 1983, NATO maneuvers sour a nuclear launch and it caused widespread panic in the USSR. General Secretary Yuri Andropov, who was in ill health at the time, was worried that the maneuvers, were actually a genuine first strike. In response, Soviet nuclear forces were readied and air units in East Germany and Poland were placed on alert. It was a tense situation and although U.S. intelligence felt that the Soviet response was merely a propaganda effort, there are many who feel that ailing Andropov was convinced that a NATO first strike was imminent.Post Cold WarWhen the Cold War ended and the Warsaw Pact dissolved in 1991, the main adversary of NATO was gone. There was a strategic reassessment of N ATOs purpose. While this reassessment and realignment of the nature and tasks of the alliance were underway, the ultimate result is that NATO has expanded into Eastern Europe and former Warsaw Pact countries are becoming part of the alliance. NATO has also extended its activities into new areas.In 1990, NATO welcomed the German reunification. This meant that the former East Germany was part of the Federal democracy of Germany and therefore alliance. This had been agreed in the Two Plus Four Treaty earlier in the year. There was still a need for Soviet approval of a united Germany to remain in NATO so it was stipulated that foreign troops and nuclear weapons would not be stationed in the eastern part of the country (the former East Germany).Because of this new treaty, there has been an ongoing controversy between scholars and diplomats regarding the amplification of the NATO Alliance. Once scholar, Stephen F. Cohen argued in 2005 that a fealty was disposed that NATO would never e xpand further east,19. On the other hand but according to Robert Zoellick,( then a State Department official involve in the Two Plus Four negotiating process,) feels that Cohen is wrong as there was no formal commitment of the sort made in the treaty regarding any other country besides Germany.20 In May 2008, The insouciant Telegraph held an interview with Mikhail Gorbachev who felt along with Cohen that there was a commitment made. Gorbachev said the Americans promised that NATO wouldnt move beyond the boundaries of Germany after the Cold War but instanter half of central and eastern Europe are members, so what happened to their promises? It shows they cannot be trusted.21NATOs military structure was cut back and reorganized in the post Cold War era, with new forces such as the Headquarters Allied Command Europe Rapid Reaction Corps established. The Treaty on Conventional Armed wildnesss in Europe agreed between NATO and the then still existent Warsaw Pact, man encounterd speci fic reductions in personnel, weapons, and nukes. afterwards the collapse of the Soviet Union, the military balance in Europe shifted and this was accepted in the Adapted Conventional Armed Forces in Europe Treaty. Finally in 1995, after nearly a 30 year absence, France rejoined NATOs soldiery Committee in 1995. French President Nicolas Sarkozy reformed Frances military position and enabled the country to return to full membership on 4 April 2009. This date also saw France rejoin the integrated military command of NATO, even as it still maintains its own nuclear deterrent independently of the alliance.22Balkans interventions later on years of military preparedness and no fighting during the Cold War, NATOs first military operation came during the former Yugoslavia civil war. It was called operating room Sharp observe and ran from June 1993-October 1996. NATO provided maritime enforcement of the arms embargo, and set ic sanctions against the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. half do zen months into the embargo and blockade, (28 February 1994) NATO took its first military action, by shooting down four Bosnian Serb aircraft. These planes violated a U.N.-mandated no-fly zone over central Bosnia and Herzegovina. NATOs Operation Deliberate Force, a bombing campaign started in August, 1995, against the Army of the Republika Srpska, after the Srebrenica massacre.Operation Deny Flight, the no-fly-zone enforcement mission, started in 1993, continued the end of celestial latitude 1995. The NATO air strikes forced an end to the war in Bosnia. This culminated in the the Dayton Agreement, that provided NATO with authority to deployed peacekeeping operation force, under Operation Joint Endeavor, first named IFOR and then SFOR. This deployment ran from December 1996 to December 2004. Following the lead of its member nations, NATO began to award a service medal, the NATO Medal, for these operations in appreciation of its troops efforts in a difficult endeavor. NATO was now a fully fledged military organization that was as fit as any single member nation on conducting a military operation to successful conclusion. What had been words on paper was now put into practice.From 1994 to 1997, NATO and its neighbors set up several forums for dialogue in order to keep conflict at a minimum. The Partnership for Peace, the Mediterranean communion initiative and the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council were all results of these forums and led the way to a more inclusive membership in the alliance. On 8 July 1997, three former communist countries, Hungary, the Czech Republic, and Poland, were invited to join NATO and their final admission occurred in 1999. By 1998, the NATO-Russia Permanent Joint Council was established to keep communications open and free flowing between the former adversaries.NATO saw its first broad-scale military engagement in the Kosovo War, where it waged an 11-week bombing campaign, called Operation Allied Force. This was again against what wa s then the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia as the Serbians massacred and cracked- down on Albanian civilians in Kosovo. While a formal declaration of war never took place the NATO action was successful. Yugoslavian leader Slobodan Miloevi agreed to NATOs demands and Kosovos native Albanians were free to digest or go.During Kosovo, NATO deployed one of its international reaction forces, the ACE Mobile Force (Land), to deliver humanitarian aid to Kosovan refugees. 23 NATO then established the KFOR, a NATO-led force under a United Nations mandate that operated the military mission in Kosovo. In August-September 2001, the alliance also mounted Operation Essential Harvest, a mission disarming ethnic Albanian militias in the Republic of Macedonia.24 NATOs work in the military arena was expanding and becoming vital to international interestsThis expansion and necessity led the United States, the United Kingdom, and most other NATO countries to compare efforts that require the U.N. certif ication Council to approve NATO military strikes, as had happened against Serbias invasion into Kosovo in 1999. France and some others claimed that the alliance needed U.N. approval of course probably more as a way to thwart the US/UK more than any ideological reasons.The U.S./U.K. side that Russia and China would have exercised their Security Council vetoes to block the strike on Yugoslavia and thereby condemned all those ethnic Albanians to slaughter. Russia and China could in fact exercise these same vetoes whenever future conflicts arose where NATO intervention was required. This would essentially cripple and the purpose of the organization. NATO adopted the Alliance Strategic Concept during its Washington Summit in April 1999 that emphasized conflict prevention and crisis management25 as a prelude to any sort of military intervention unless required and approved by the alliance. afterward the 11 September attacksEverything changed after the 9/11 attacks on the United States. A t this time, and for the first time, NATO invoked Article 5 of the NATO Charter. The Article statesArticle 5The Parties agree that an armed attack against one or more of them in Europe or North America shall be considered an attack against them all and consequently they agree that, if such an armed attack occurs, each of them, in exercise of the right of individual or collective self-defence recognised by Article 51 of the Charter of the United Nations, will assist the Party or Parties so attacked by taking forthwith, individually and in concert with the other Parties, such action as it deems necessary, including the use of armed force, to restore and maintain the security of the North Atlantic area.Any such armed attack and all measures taken as a result thereof shall immediately be reported to the Security Council. Such measures shall be terminated when the Security Council has taken the measures necessary to restore and maintain international peace and security .Essentially, an a ttack on any member shall be considered to be an attack on all members.This invocation of Article fin was ratified on 4 October 2001 when NATO determined that the attacks were indeed eligible under the terms of the North Atlantic Treaty.26 Eight official actions were taken by NATO to respond to the attacks. Among them were Operation Eagle Assist and Operation Active Endeavour. Operation Active Endeavour is to prevent the movement of terrorists or weapons of mass decease as well as to enhance the security of shipping in general in the Mediterranean .Despite this early show of solidarity within the alliance there was another crisis barely more than a year later. France and Belgium vetoed the procedure of silent approval concerning the timing of protective measures for Turkey in case of a possible war with Iraq. Germany did not use its right to break the procedure but said it supported the veto. So that all efforts to assist that member fell into abeyance and should Turkey be attacke d, there is no agenda in place to quickly form a reprisal.On the other hand the invasion of Afghanistan provided NATO with a chance for a more public unity. On 16 April 2003, NATO took command of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan. Germany and the Netherlands, the two nations leading ISAF at the time of the agreement requested this action and all NATO ambassadors approved it unanimously. The handover of control to NATO took place on 11 August, and marked the first time in NATOs history that it took charge of a mission outside the north Atlantic area.By January 2004, NATO appointed Minister Hikmet etin, of Turkey, as the Senior Civilian Representative (SCR) in Afghanistan to be responsible for advancing the political-military aspects of the Alliance in Afghanistan. On 31 July 2006, a NATO-led force took over military operations in the southeastward of Afghanistan from a U.S.-led anti-terrorism coalition and has been protecting the area since. Bowing to US Pressure, NATO even has set up a training program in Iraq to assist in that countrys efforts.NATOs involvement in both arenas has expanded its role in the war against terrorism and the alliance has been instrumental in assisting the now 8 year old conflicts in their efforts to bring the terror organizations in both countries to a halt.