NATOs Member Countries

The founding members (1949): Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Iceland, Italy, Luxembourg, The
Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, United Kingdom, United States.
Phases of enlargement: Greece, Turkey (1952); Germany (1955); Spain (1982); Czech Republic,
Hungary, Poland (1999); Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia (2004);
Albania, Croatia (2009).
The Beginnings
The North Atlantic Treaty, signed in Washington in April 1949, created an Alliance
for collective defense as defined in Article 51 of the United Nations Charter. The
Treaty is of indefinite duration. The founding members of the Alliance include
Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Iceland, Italy, Luxembourg, the
Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, United Kingdom and the United States.

Enlargement Yesterday
In accordance with Article 10 of the Treaty, the Alliance has always remained open to accessions by
other European States in a position to further its principles and to contribute to the security of the
North Atlantic area. In 1952, Greece and Turkey joined the original 12 member countries of the
Alliance, followed in 1955 by the Federal Republic of Germany and in 1982 by Spain. In July
1997, at a Summit Meeting in Madrid, the Heads of States and Government of the Alliance invited
three more countries to begin accession talks and on 12 March 1999, the Czech Republic,
Hungary and Poland formally became members of NATO.
In November 2002, at the Prague Summit, invitations were extended to seven more countries to begin
accession talks, namely Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia. These
countries formally joined the Alliance on 29 March 2004.
Albania and Croatia, which were invited to join NATO at the Bucharest Summit in April 2008, formally
became members in April 2009 at the Strasbourg Kehl Summit.
The admission of new democratic members into NATO is itself part of a wider process of greater
integration in Europe involving other European institutions.
Enlargement Today and into the Future
The Alliance now links 26 European countries with the United States and Canada. NATO has an open
door policy on enlargement. Any European country in a position to further the principles of the North
Atlantic Treaty and contribute to security in the EuroAtlantic area can become a member of the
Alliance, when invited to do so by the existing member countries. At the Strasbourg Kehl Summit a
vision was set out of the future membership for others, including an invitation for the former Yugoslav
Republic of Macedonia as soon as the name issue is resolved. Also, NATO welcomed Ukraines and
Georgias EuroAtlantic aspiration to membership in NATO.

Challenges and Risks: Tasks

By the early 1990s, it soon became apparent that although the end of the Cold War might have
removed direct military threats, instability in some parts of Europe had increased. A number of regional
conflicts, often fueled by ethnic and religious tensions, broke out in the former Yugoslavia and in parts
of the former Soviet Union. These conflicts threatened to spread throughout these regions and even

further afield.
Responding to these risks, NATO has, over the past decade, evolved from being an alliance exclusively
concerned with collective defense, to one which provides a central focus for a partnership among many
nations cooperating in the wider field of security.

End of the Cold War

The Alliance celebrated its fortieth anniversary of the
signing of the North Atlantic Treaty in April 1989. This
event coincided with the beginning of a period of
profound change in the course of EastWest and
international relations and a farreaching transformation
of the security environment.
Fall of the Berlin Wall (1989)

The role of the North Atlantic Alliance was fundamental

in bringing about the conditions for change. By
providing the basis for collective defense and common
security of its member countries and by preserving the
strategic balance in Europe throughout the Cold War, the
Alliance safeguarded the freedom and independence of
its members.

NATOs essential and enduring purpose is to safeguard the freedom and security of all its members by
political and military means. Collective defence is at the heart of the Alliance and creates a spirit of
solidarity and cohesion among its members.
NATO strives to secure a lasting peace in Europe, based on common values of individual liberty,
democracy, human rights and the rule of law. Since the outbreak of crises and conflicts beyond the
borders of NATO member countries can jeopardize this objective, the Alliance also contributes to peace
and stability through crisis management operations and partnerships. Essentially, NATO not only helps
to defend the territory of its members, but engages where possible and when necessary to project its
values further afield, prevent crises, manage crises, stabilize postconflict situations and support
reconstruction.
Security Tasks
Soldiers from the Natoled force, Isaf, The Strategic Concept is an official document that outlines
hold flags during a change of command NATOs enduring purpose and nature and its fundamental
ceremony at their headquarters in Kabul, security tasks. It also identifies the central features of the
new security environment, specifies the elements of the
Afghanistan
Alliances approach to security and provides guidelines for the
adaptation of its military forces.
In sum, it equips the Alliance for security challenges and
guides its future political and military development. A new
Strategic Concept was published at the Lisbon Summit in
November 2010, reflecting a transformed security
environment and a transformed Alliance. New and emerging
security threats, especially since the 9/11 terrorist attacks,
NATOs crisis management experience in the Balkans and
Afghanistan, and the value and importance of working with
partners from across the globe, all drove NATO to reassess
and review its strategic posture.

The fight against terrorism

The fight against terrorism is high on NATOs agenda. Both
the Strategic Concept and the Lisbon Summit Declaration
make clear that terrorism poses a real and serious threat to
the security and safety of the Alliance and its members.
NATO will continue to fight this scourge, individually and
collectively, in accordance with international law and the
principles of the UN Charter. NATOs new Policy Guidelines for
Alliance work on counterterrorism focus on improved threat
awareness, adequate capabilities and enhanced engagement
with partner countries and other international actors.
Terrorism is a global threat that knows no border, nationality
or religion. It is therefore a challenge that the international
community must tackle together. Since the attacks of 11
September 2001, NATO has been actively engaged in the
fight against terrorism. In response to those attacks, NATO
invoked Article 5 of the Washington Treaty, the Alliances
collective defence clause, for the first time in its history. The
North Atlantic Council (NAC), the Alliances principal political
decisionmaking body, decides on NATOs overall role in the
fight against terrorism.
Defense Against Terrorism

Combating Trafficking in Human Beings

In order to support the international efforts to combat this new type of slavery, which constitutes a
flagrant abuse of human rights and fuels corruption and organized crime, NATO has adopted a
comprehensive policy on combating trafficking in human beings at the Istanbul Summit.
Combating Trafficking in Human beings

Weapons of Mass Destruction

Science Photo Library / Van Parys

Media

NATOs Strategic Concept made clear that the

proliferation of nuclear weapons and other weapons of mass
destruction (WMD), and their means of delivery, threatens
incalculable consequences for global stability and prosperity.
During the next decade, proliferation will be most acute in
some of the worlds most volatile regions.
Heads of state and government further emphasized at
their Summit in Chicago in May 2012 that proliferation
threatens our shared vision of creating the conditions
necessary for a world without nuclear weapons in accordance
with the goals of the Nuclear NonProliferation Treaty (NPT).