North Atlantic Treaty

Official Name

North Atlantic Treaty.

Signatories

The treaty has been signed by Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxemburg, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Turkey, the United Kingdom and the United States.

Dates

The treaty was signed by most parties on 4 April 1949 and came into effect on 24 August 1949. The exceptions are:

Languages

The treaty was written in English and French. It is also available in Arabic, Czech, Danish, Dutch, German, Greek, Hebrew, Hungarian, Icelandic, Italian, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish and Turkish.

Key Points

The most important principle of the North Atlantic Treaty is that if one of the member nations is attacked then it is considered an attack on all members of the treaty and according to the United Nations Charter has a right to self-defence against the threat. The treaty establishes a council, known as the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation, or NATO, to conduct diplomatic talks and negotiations on behalf of the member nations.

The aim of NATO is to conduct talks that will aid in resolving any international dispute by peaceful means and promote economic cooperation throughout the international community. This organisation will meet whenever a member nation or peace is threatened in a neighbouring area and will discuss all peaceful alternatives, and if required military tactics.

Events as a result of the treaty

The North Atlantic Treaty was an alliance of the Western powers. The Eastern Bloc, lead by the Soviet Union countered the act in 1955 with the creation of the Warsaw Pact. This was essentially the same as the North Atlantic Treaty, however unlike the western equivalent conflict arose in 1968 and the Pact was called into force after an uprising in Prague, Czechoslovakia. When the Soviet Union collapsed in 1990 the Warsaw Pact was disbanded in 1991.

During a routine exercise for NATO officers in November 1983 the Soviet Union intercepted information which led them to believe that NATO was planning a nuclear attack. The Soviet Union prepared a counter-attack, however once the NATO transmissions had stopped it was realised that the threat was non-existent. This exercise was known as 'Able Archer' and to this day it is not known how close the world was to nuclear war.

North AtlanticNATO and Yugoslavia

After the collapse of the Eastern Bloc a new conflict in Europe erupted. Civil war exploded in Yugoslavia in 1991 when the Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic refused to hand Yugoslav rule to Stipe Mesic, the Croatian ruler. Consequently Croatia, as well as Slovenia, left the Republic and created independent states. The Yugoslav army, under the command of Milosevic, invaded tia in retaliation and also defence for the large Serb minority inside Croatia's borders. Fighting lasted till a ceasefire was negotiated by the United Nations, which came into effect in January 1992.

In 1992 the Bosnian government held referendums with a majority of the vote being in favour of independence and a split from Yugoslavia. Due to the ethnic make-up of Bosnia, being primarily Muslim and Serb, agreements could not be made on the nature of a new Bosnian state. Serbia and the Serbs living in Bosnia began to push forward and capture as much land as possible. As the Serbian Army pushed further into Muslim territory the fighting became more barbaric and ethnic cleansing began.

The international community expressed extreme distress at the conflict and bloodshed. Several ceasefires were made and broken between 1992 and 1999. NATO tried to negotiate with Milosevic in regards to a peacekeeping force established in Yugoslavia and bringing an end to ethnic cleansing. Milosevic refused to negotiate. Finally on March 24 1999 NATO forces began to bomb the Serbian capital of Belgrade. Eventually in October 2000 Milosevic was ousted from power, bringing an end to ethnic cleansing and conflict involving NATO troops in the former Yugoslavia.

Current Events concerning the treaty

For the first time the United States invoked the North Atlantic Treaty after the attacks on New York City and Washington, 11 September 2001. On 12 September 2001 members of the North Atlantic Treaty supported the decision by the United States and United Kingdom to retaliate against the Muslim extreme group al-Qaida. This operation is continuing to this very day.

In April 2008 Albania and Croatia were invited to join the North Atlantic Treaty. If the nations decide to join, the treaty will be signed in 2009.

Resources Used:

Baylis, J., Owens, P., Smith, S., 2008, The Globalization of World Politics, 4th edn, Oxford University Press, New York

Burrows, T., 2007, The Visual History of the Modern World, 5th edn, Hinkler Books Pty Ltd, Heatherton

"NATO - Member countries." NATO - Homepage. 11 Nov. 2008 <http://www.nato.int/cps/en/natolive/nato_countries.htm>.

"NATO Official Text: The North Atlantic Treaty." NATO - Homepage. 25 Nov. 2008 <http://www.nato.int/docu/basictxt/treaty.htm>.

"NATO - Topic: Member countries." NATO - Homepage. 13 Nov. 2008 <http://www.nato.int/cps/en/natolive/topics_52044.htm?selectedLocale=en>.