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NATO is a military organization of 29 countries. It was established to protect the peace and security of member states. Turkey is also a member of NATO.
NATO, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, is an international military alliance organization established to protect the freedom and security of member states. Fair shares against the risks and burdens faced by the Allied countries are among the elements that make the Alliance successful and indispensable. NATO’s political purpose; to support democratic values, to consult member states’ defense and security problems, to cooperate, to build trust and to provide opportunities to prevent conflicts in the long run. Its military purpose is; primarily to assist in the peaceful resolution of disputes between countries. If unsuccessful, it is to discuss possible military operations by creating a crisis method. the military forces of the Alliance; Although it is not a NATO member in war zones, it can undertake various tasks such as training the soldiers of some countries, maritime piracy operations, ensuring security in no-fly zones, and enforcing embargoes.
Its headquarters is in Brussels, the capital of Belgium, one of the member states.
The History of NATO
NATO was established within the framework of the “North Atlantic Treaty” signed by 12 countries on April 4, 1949 in Washington. The treaty was ratified by the United States in August of the same year. With the participation of 17 more countries on different dates, it became an international military organization with 29 member countries.
The foundation of NATO; The joint defense treaty signed by Belgium, the United Kingdom (England), France, the Netherlands and Luxembourg on 17 March 1948 against the Soviet threat at the beginning of the Cold War is based on the Brussels Treaty. This treaty is the precursor to the founding of NATO. In 1948, European leaders met with American military and diplomatic officials at the Pentagon. These negotiations resulted in the signing of the North Atlantic Treaty on April 4, 1949. the treaty; Apart from the 5 states that signed the Brussels Treaty, the USA, Denmark, Italy, Iceland, Canada, Norway and Portugal also signed it.
For this reason, NATO had to develop military plans. Thereupon, the NATO Military Committee called for the establishment of conventional (contracted) forces. In 1954, the Soviet Union argued that it should join the Alliance for European peace; however, the Soviets’ proposal, which was worried about weakening the Alliance, was not accepted.
The revolutions of 1989 and the dissolution of the Warsaw Pact in 1991 eliminated NATO’s de facto rival. This development led to strategic changes in NATO’s purpose, mission, and focus on Europe. This change began with the Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe, signed in Paris in 1990 between NATO and the Soviet Union, aimed at reducing military forces. NATO began reducing its military spending. After the Cold War, NATO’s military structure was reduced; emergency response forces were formed. With the collapse of the Soviet Union, the military balances in Europe changed. In this context, the “Adapted Convention on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe” was signed in Istanbul in 1999.
After these developments, NATO began to expand to include Central and Eastern European countries.
Old NATO structures were abolished and new ones were established. The number of 65 centers in the command structure has been reduced to 20. The summit held in Riga, the capital of Latvia in 2006, was the first summit held in a country within the former Soviet Union, and energy security was discussed at this summit. On June 5, 2017, Montenegro became the 29th and newest member of NATO, despite the objections of Russia.
Missions Assumed by NATO
NATO conducted no military operations during the Cold War. After the Cold War, the first operations were carried out due to the invasion of Iraq and Kuwait in 1990-1991. Specially equipped planes were sent to the southeast region of Turkey and military units were dispatched. In order to ensure security in the interior of Bosnia and Herzegovina, which was declared a no-fly zone by the United Nations (UN) during the 1992 Bosnian War, NATO began to implement the “No-Fly Operation” on 12 August 1993. On February 28, 1994, 4 Serbian planes that violated the no-fly zone decision were shot down by NATO planes.
During this war, arms and economic embargo decisions against Yugoslavia were implemented from the sea between June 1993 and October 1996 with NATO’s “Operation Sharp Guard”.
Some of NATO’s other important missions and operations are as follows;
August 1995: After the Srebrenica massacre, the “Decisive Force” bombardment operation was carried out against the Serbian forces and lasted for two weeks.
December 14, 1995: NATO sent the UN-commanded peacekeeping force called IFOR to the Bosnian region. 60,000 soldiers, including non-NATO soldiers, took part in the peacekeeping force.
March 24, 1999: “Operation Allied Power” was carried out against the military force of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia against the pressures of the Serbian forces on Albanian civilians in Kosovo. The bombardments in the operation lasted 78 days.
June 11, 1999: NATO’s peacekeeping force, KFOR, was deployed in Kosovo under UN command.
August-September 2001: “Operation Forced Harvest” to disarm Albanian militias in Macedonia
October 4, 2001: For the first time in NATO’s history, following the September 11 terrorist attack in the United States, the 5th Amendment to the treaty.”Operation Active Effort” was launched in the Mediterranean.
August 11, 2003: The command of the International Assistance Force (ISAF), consisting of soldiers from 42 countries, passed to NATO. For the first time in NATO’s history, it took command of a mission outside the North Atlantic region. ISAF deployed across Afghanistan in October 2003 against Taliban and al-Qaeda terrorism. In December 2004, ISAF was disbanded, the “Decisive Support Mission” was implemented.
August 2004: NATO undertook the “NATO Training Mission – Iraq” to support the US-led Iraqi forces during the Iraq War.
August 17. 2009: NATO sends warships in the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean to protect maritime traffic from Somali pirates. In this mission, called “Operation Ocean Shield,” NATO also protected aid ships sent to Somalia.
March 20, 2011: During the military intervention in Libya, NATO forces were deployed off the coast of Libya to implement the UN’s no-fly zone resolutions. Turkish soldiers also took part in this mission.
Turkey and NATO
Turkey became a member of NATO in 1952.
Turkey fulfills its duties to fulfill common values and responsibilities with allied countries. Turkey sees NATO as the leading role for maintaining security and stability in the European and Atlantic geography, and for political and military consultations.
Turkey is one of the countries that support the “defense transformation” efforts in NATO. In this context, it contributes to the NATO Response Force (NRF), which is a transformation catalyst. In this context, a preparatory level force headquarters was established in Istanbul. In addition, within the framework of NATO’s restructuring at the command level, it is envisaged to establish a land command instead of the air command in Izmir. In addition, the Partnership for Peace Training Center (PIP), which was established on 29 June 1998 within the body of the Turkish Armed Forces (TAF), provides comprehensive strategic and tactical training to the personnel of allied and partner countries.
Turkey, which is trying to become a full member of the European Union (EU), gives full support to the strategic partnership processes between NATO and the EU as a result of this desire.
NATO Member Countries
NATO has 29 members.
As of 2017, the secretary general is Norwegian politician Jens Stoltenberg.
NATO member countries are required to spend at least 2 percent of their gross domestic product (GDP) on defense expenditures. However, countries experiencing political and economic crisis may not achieve this goal.
NATO’s decisions are taken unanimously as an expression of the common will of 29 member states.
Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty is applicable to any country subjected to armed attack. It is a clause that requires other member states to help. This article was implemented for the first and only time after the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center in America on September 11, 2001.
Any armed attack on NATO member countries is considered an attack on all countries. Within this framework, each member has to help the attacked country and support it with military force if necessary.
The first Secretary General of NATO, Lord Ismay, declared the purpose of the Alliance as “to keep the Russians out, the Americans in, the Germans down”.
br/>To date, more than 1300 “standardization agreements” have been signed for many common practices within NATO.
NATO’s first naval exercise was the Mainbrace Exercise, which included the defense of Denmark and Norway, held in September 1952.
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