The North Atlantic Treaty Organisation NATO

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The North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO)

• IR 2001 International Organisations in Europe
  Week 10

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NATO Questions

• Why was NATO created?
• What is the structure and decision-making
  procedure in NATO?
• What role did NATO play during the Cold War?
• How did this change with the fall of the Soviet
  Union?
• Why did NATO expand?
• What is the role of NATO in European security
  today?
• What is the future of NATO?

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Cold War in Context

• European power politics following the Second
  World War
• Weak traditional continental European powers
• Soviet influence in the CEECs
• Troop withdrawal on the part of Western allies
• US from 3.1 million to 391 000
• UK from 1 321 000 to 488 000
• Canada from 299 000 to 0

In one year
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European Security and alliance

• Co-operation in evolution
• Treaty of Brussels (1948)
• Western Union Defence Organisation
• Vandenberg Resolution (1948)
• Allowed US to enter Atlantic alliance
• North Atlantic Treaty (1949)
• Created NATO
• Collective defence or collective security?

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NATO An Alliance

• NATO objective based on NAT
• Collective defence
• Article V The 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.
  

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NATO An Alliance

• NATO objective based on NAT
• Collective defence
• Article VI an armed attack on one or more of the
  Parties is deemed to include an armed attack
• on the territory of any of the Parties in Europe
  or North America, on the Algerian Departments of
  France (2), on the territory of or on the Islands
  under the jurisdiction of any of the Parties in
  the North Atlantic area north of the Tropic of
  Cancer
• on the forces, vessels, or aircraft of any of the
  Parties, when in or over these territories or any
  other area in Europe in which occupation forces
  of any of the Parties were stationed on the date
  when the Treaty entered into force or the
  Mediterranean Sea or the North Atlantic area
  north of the Tropic of Cancer.

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NATO An Alliance

• Functions
• Explicit
• Collective defence and security
• Implicit
• Continued US influence in the region
• Extension of US military action in other regions
• European/US communication on security issues

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NATO An Alliance

• Structure

Warsaw Pact
NATO
10
NATO Command Structure
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NATOs role in the Cold War

• Balance Soviet Power
• Gather intelligence
• Monitor borders
• Monitor incursions
• Ensure secondary strike capabilities
• Deterrence?

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NATO after the Cold War

• London Declaration (1990)
• Transition from Collective Defence to Collective
  and Common Security.
• Transition from the militaristic to the political
• Partnership for Peace (1994)
• Improvement of military co-operation
  (transparency)
• Joint military manoeuvres and planning
• Joint operations (peace-keeping/building)

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NATO after the Cold War

• PfP Framework Document
• facilitation of transparency in national defence
  planning and budgeting processes
• ensuring democratic control of defence forces
• maintenance of the capability and readiness to
  contribute, subject to constitutional
  considerations, to operations under the authority
  of the UN and/or the responsibility of the CSCE
• the development of cooperative military
  relations with NATO, for the purpose of joint
  planning, training, and exercises in order to
  strengthen their ability to undertake missions in
  the fields of peacekeeping, search and rescue,
  humanitarian operations, and others as may
  subsequently be agreed
• the development, over the longer term, of forces
  that are better able to operate with those of the
  members of the North Atlantic Alliance.

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NATO after the Cold War

• North Atlantic Councils
• Madrid (1997)
• Washington (1999)
• Prague (2002)
• Istanbul (2004)

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NATO and Enlargement

• Reasons for not expanding
• No point of alliance
• Bothers the Russians
• Less wieldy organisational structure
• Poses impossible military obligations
• Takes away from deepening of EU
• Dilutes NATO power
• Divides into us and them
• Includes possible unstable states in otherwise
  stable alliance

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NATO and Enlargement

• NATO Enlargement Study (1995)
• Enlargement was an end within itself
• Seen as part of wider process of restructuring
• Reinforcing common security
• Russias views were to be taken into
  consideration
• Madrid (1997) invitation to three countries
• Prague (2000) invitation to seven more

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NATO and Enlargement

• Reasons for enlargement
• Political and moral obligation
• Add to security of existing members
• Enhance security for candidate countries
• Enhance regional security
• Give approval to transitioning states
• Keep the US interested in Europe
• Gives leverage over new members
• NATO only real security organisation

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NATO and the US

• Issues
• Domestic politics and US foreign policy
• US military power unrivalled
• US economic power no longer unrivalled
• US as hegemon, global policeman

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NATO and the US

• Arguments for US engagement in Europe
• Leverage over US
• Contains US interference
• Europeans cannot do it alone
• UK preference over France or Germany
• Diplomatic communication

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NATO and the US

• Arguments against US engagement in Europe
• No longer required, new European initiatives
• Europeans must control their own security
• US is profoundly unilateralist
• Significant divergence of interests
• US actions reducing regional security (ex. Iraq)

22
NATO Operations

• Post-Cold War initiatives
• Move towards peace-keeping along with OSCE
• Crisis management also with UN
• Burden-sharing with OSCE/Eurocorps
• NATO as peace-keeper
• OSCE/EU as peace-builder

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NATO Operations

• Former Yugoslavia
• Naval Blockade (Adriatic)
• No-fly zone (Bosnia)
• Air-strikes (Sarajevo)
• First ever troop deployment (Bosnia)
• Air strikes on Yugoslav forces (Kosovo)
• 38 004 sorties flown
• 820 aircraft from 14 states
• Peace-keeping (Kosovo)

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NATO Operations

• Afghanistan
• Response to 9/11
• Article V invoked
• Bombing 6 Oct 2001
• http//www.mapbureau.com/afghanistan/
• ISAF UN mandated
• Command of ISAF from August 2003
• Direction from SHAPE
• Co-ordinate with Eurocorps

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NATO and the Future

• Are NATOs days numbered?
• Will continued expansion bring about greater
  instability in the region?
• Will NATO survive the War on Terror?

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NATO Conclusion

• Why was NATO created?
• What is the structure and decision-making
  procedure in NATO?
• What role did NATO play during the Cold War?
• How did this change with the fall of the Soviet
  Union?
• Why did NATO expand?
• What is the role of NATO in European security
  today?
• What is the future of NATO?