NATO(North Atlantic Treaty Organisation)

Context:

NATO has recently issued warning to Russia to abstain from violating airspace of its members.

UPSC Relevance: Important International institutions.

UPSC PYQ:

Q) Consider the following countries: 
I. Austria 
II. Bulgaria 
III. Croatia 
IV. Serbia 
V. Sweden 
VI. North Macedonia 
How many of the above are members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization? 

[A] Only three

[B] Only four

[C] Only five

[D] All the six

About NATO:

• The North Atlantic Treaty Organisation is a political and military alliance created in the aftermath of World War II by 12 countries from Europe and North America. It was founded on April 4, 1949.
• 12 founding members: Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Iceland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, the United Kingdom and the United States.
• Since then, 20 more countries have joined NATO through 10 rounds of enlargement (in 1952, 1955, 1982, 1999, 2004, 2009, 2017, 2020, 2023 and 2024).
• Headquarters: Brussels, Belgium, while the Allied Command Operations headquarters is near Mons, Belgium.
• It was formed by the signing of the Washington Treaty, which is based on Article 51 of the United Nations Charter, “which reaffirms the right of individual or collective defence.”
• The principle of collective defence (an attack against one Ally is an attack against all) is enshrined in Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty, which commits NATO members to mutual defence.
• Open door policy (Article 10): Article 10 of the North Atlantic Treaty sets out how countries can join the Alliance. It states that membership is open to any “European State in a position to further the principles of this Treaty and to contribute to the security of the North Atlantic area”.
• All European countries are eligible to join NATO.
• Since 1949, the  alliance membership has increased from 12 to 32 countries through ten rounds of enlargement.
• Sweden became the latest country to join the Alliance in 2024.
• NATO makes its decisions by consensus. Hence, if a new country wants to join NATO, it must be supported by all other members. Any of its member countries can veto a new member. is a political and military alliance created in the aftermath of World War II by 12 countries from Europe and North America. It was founded on April 4, 1949.

Process of joining:

• Accession talks: To obtain formal confirmation from the invitees.
• Letters of intent: They are sent to NATO along with the timeline of reforms.
• Accession protocols are signed and ratified by NATO countries with the consensus of all members.
• Accession to the North Atlantic Treaty.
• Submission of instruments of accession to the US State Department makes invitees NATO members.
• Any decision to invite a country to join the Alliance is taken by the North Atlantic Council, NATO’s principal political decision-making body, on the basis of consensus among all Allies.

Functioning

• North Atlantic Council is the principal political decision-making body.
• Military Command Structure: It includes Strategic Commands (e.g., Allied Command Operations) responsible for operational planning and execution, as well as Regional Commands and Force Headquarters.
• Integrated Military Forces: NATO maintains integrated military forces, allowing member countries to contribute personnel and assets to collective defence efforts under NATO command.
• Funding: Every NATO country contributes to the costs of running the Alliance, based on a cost-share formula derived from Gross National Income.