Foreign
Policy: North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) |
NATO |
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Belgium is a founding member of the Atlantic Alliance that was set up by the North Atlantic Treaty signed in Washington on 4 April 1949. Belgium continues to support the Alliance's collective defence objective set out in Article 5 of the founding treaty whereby "an armed attack against one or more of [the contracting parties] [¿] 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". NATO is therefore primarily a military alliance that aims to guarantee the security of member countries. However, it also serves as a political instrument that facilitates the transatlantic consultation processes required to have a better understanding of different security and defence-related interests.
After Cold War, the attacks on 11 September 2001 revealed the emergence of new threats linked to international terrorism and the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, which are more wide-spread and less predictable than previous threats. More than ever before, they justified a new assessment and reflection process that was no longer solely based on how to react to an external enemy but rather on the need to protect civilians and democratic institutions, even within member countries. Belgium agrees with its allies on the need to respond to these new threats and has declared its solidarity with them in order to address important challenges in a radically changing security environment.
In recent years, the Alliance has set itself a number of priority objectives with the aim of ensuring greater security:
- Pursue an enlargement and expansion policy in accordance with Article 10 of the North Atlantic Treaty which states that "the Parties may, by unanimous agreement, invite any other European State in a position to further the principles of this Treaty and to contribute to the security of the North Atlantic area to accede to this Treaty". Consequently, the Alliance enlarged in 1999 to include three new members and again in 2004 to include a further seven. Other countries, such as Albania, Croatia, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and possibly Ukraine and Georgia hope to join NATO in the future. This enlargement or 'open door' policy is particularly important since it should transform the entire European continent into an area of peace and security.
- Develop a good neighbourhood policy by increasing the number of partnerships and contacts. After the fall of the Berlin Wall, NATO developed new partnerships as part of the Partnership for Peace programme which aimed to stabilise the countries of the former Soviet bloc and help them develop democracies. Each of these partnerships is significant in its own right because they all improve the prospects for cooperation and understanding in the fight against insecurity and instability:
- The partnership with Russia prompted the creation of the NATO-Russia Council.
- The Euro-Atlantic Partnership open to OSCE member countries.
- The distinctive partnership with Ukraine.
- The Mediterranean Dialogue bringing together seven countries.
- The Istanbul Cooperation Initiative.
- Increase the number of operations and missions outside its territory. The Atlantic Alliance is involved in a certain number of external operations and missions with a view to making a more pro-active contribution to peacekeeping and security in general. This trend has grown more pronounced since 11 September following NATO's commitment to be more actively involved in the fight against terrorism and the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. As regards the collapse of the former Republic of Yugoslavia, it should be noted that the reason behind NATO intervention was primarily humanitarian. In general, operations and missions take place under a mandate from the UN Security Council. Only Operation Active Endeavour for naval control and monitoring of maritime routes in the Mediterranean is based on the legal implementation of Article 5 of the Washington Treaty mentioned above which was invoked on 12 September 2001.
NATO is currently involved in the following operations and missions:
- Kosovo - KFOR operation: stabilisation operation until a political solution is found, based on Security Council Resolution 1244;
- Afghanistan - International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) stabilisation operation in the North and West of the country launched by Security Council Resolution 1386;
- Bosnia and Herzegovina: mission to reform the Bosnian army and track down war criminals (stabilisation operation run by the European Union since 2005);
- Iraq: mission to train the Iraqi army mandated by Security Council Resolution 1546;
- Sudan Darfur: logistical support for the African Union operation.
Belgium makes significant contributions to the operations in Kosovo and Afghanistan.
- Boost its military capabilities. Changes in global security have resulted in and highlighted the need for the Alliance to adapt its military capabilities. During the Cold War, efforts were focused on territorial defence against external attack. However, current developments mean that NATO needs to develop its external intervention capabilities. As early as the Prague Summit in November 2002, the allies agreed to launch a range of modernisation projects aimed at improving intelligence-gathering, air-to-ground surveillance, strategic air-to-sea transport, air-to-air refuelling and the general deployability of armed forces for the defence against chemical, biological or radiological attacks. This move towards modernising capabilities has been spurred on further by the need to protect against terrorist attacks.
The most important project in this area is the creation of a NATO Response Force (NRF) made up of around 25,000 men and women that can be deployed at five days' notice anywhere in the world.
All these security objectives constitute part of the 'transformation' process currently underway at NATO. Previously an institution founded on territorial defence during the Cold War, NATO is now focusing its attention towards collective security and is aiming to make a more general and active contribution to protecting peace and security in accordance with the goals and principles of the UN Charter. NATO's basic Strategic Concept remains the concept adopted in 1999 during the Washington Summit marking the Alliance's 50th Anniversary.
It is against this backdrop of a changing security environment, an Atlantic Alliance in transition and a rapidly expanding European security and defence policy that a special relationship has developed between NATO and the European Union in recent years. Since the Nice European Council at the end of 2000, NATO and the EU have engaged in regular consultation on crisis management. The Berlin Plus agreement, concluded in March 2003, outlines the scope of this consultation, makes provision for the EU to use NATO's resources and capabilities and calls for the coherent development of the two organisations' military capabilities. Developing a 'strategic partnership' between the two organisations is clearly a major challenge for the years to come.
During the recent Brussels Summit, however, NATO reiterated the need to strengthen its "role as a forum for strategic and political consultation and coordination among Allies" and to reaffirm "its place as the essential forum for security consultation between Europe and North America."
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