North+Atlantic+Treaty+Organization


 * History **

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization was founded in 1949 by Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Iceland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, the United Kingdom, and the United States. It was created by the signing of the North Atlantic Treaty on April 4, 1949. It promotes democracy, security, and the prevention of conflict. For more information on the history of NATO, go to NATO's official page: [].


 * Member States**



There are 28 member states in NATO. They include Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Iceland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, the United Kingdom, the United States, Greece, Turkey, Spain, Germany, the Czech Republic, Poland, Hungary, Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Albania, and Croatia. The most powerful states in NATO are the United States, the United Kingdom, and Germany.


 * Purposes/Goals/Objectives **

NATO’s original purpose was to stop the spread of communism by the Soviet Union. It created an alliance of states who (combined) have enough military force to stop any crisis. It promotes the principle of democracy as well as the security of its member states.It does so through political and military means. It also encourages consultation and collaboration with non-NATO countries in a wide range of security-related areas and undertakes crisis management operations. It follows the policy that “an attack against one is an attack against all”.


 * Structure **

NATO is organized into two main structures, the civilian and the military. There are many branches within the structures. The civilian structure consists of NATO headquarters, Private Office (PO), Executive Management, Public Diplomacy, Division Defence Investment, Division Defence Policy and Planning Division, Emerging Security Challenges, Division Operations Division, Political Affairs and Security Policy Division, NATO Office of Security (NOS), and NATO Office of Resources (NOR). The military structure consists of the Military Committee, International Military Staff, Allied Command Operations (APO), Allied Command Transformation, and several other minor branches. The other agencies consist of logistics, production logistic, standardisation, civil emergency planning, air traffic management/air defense, airborne early warning, communication and information systems, electronic warfare, meteorology, military oceanography, research and technology, education and training, NATO accredited Centres of Excellence, and project steering committees/project offices. For extended information on the structure of NATO, go to [].




 * Advantages of Joining **


 * Alliance strengthens bonds/political and economic ties between states uniting for a common goal
 * Smaller states are backed up by larger, more powerful states (allied defense)
 * Specific place to meet and share ideas


 * Disadvantages of Joining **


 * Membership may cause hostility from states that were formerly part of the Warsaw Pact
 * Larger states have more to lose if smaller ones get attacked
 * May lose many lives in the effort to provide security and manage crises


 * Effects on Local Diversity **

NATO both challenges and preserves local diversity in its goal to promote democracy. During the Cold War, the states in NATO were trying to preserve their own democratic ideals but at the same time, in promoting democracy to other states it was challenging their local diversity.

 NATO Organisation. (2012). North Atlantic Treaty Organization. Retrieved from : []