The causes of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine span decades, but the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, and particularly Ukraine’s efforts to join that alliance, contributes heavily to the current conflict.
President Joe Biden announced on Thursday that he was deploying thousands of additional troops to Europe but was not sending them into combat with Russia. The United States’s refusal to get more involved in the war is primarily motivated by the relationship between NATO and the U.S., as well as adherence to Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty.
THE ORIGIN OF NATO
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization, or NATO, is a military alliance of European and North American nations that have agreed to provide military aid in cases of military threats to one another.
UKRAINIAN FORCES IN DESPERATE BATTLE TO FORESTALL WHAT SEEMS INEVITABLE
The alliance was founded in 1949 after 12 nations, including the U.S., signed the North Atlantic Treaty. The military organization was founded for three purposes: deterring the expansion of the Soviet Union, forbidding the return of “nationalist militarism in Europe” through a North American presence there, and encouraging European political integration. It has since expanded its total membership to 30 countries, with several Eastern European nations joining after the Soviet Union’s fall.
NATO has played a crucial part in maintaining security for many nations in Europe, providing military assistance and backup in the face of security threats. The alliance’s membership started with Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Iceland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, the United Kingdom, and the U.S. in 1949. It has since added several countries, including Greece, Estonia, Croatia, Turkey, Germany, North Macedonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Spain.
In 1991, NATO began offering membership to several former allies of the Soviet Union, including Bulgaria, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, and Albania.
THE RELEVANCE OF ARTICLES 4 AND 5
A key element of NATO’s collective agreement is a consensus regarding mutual defense. Article 4 of the North Atlantic Treaty holds that all members of NATO will confer whenever any member believes its nation’s “territorial integrity, political independence or security” is threatened. This concept is further emphasized in Article 5, which states that an attack against any member of NATO in Europe or North America should be considered “an attack against them all.”
While this commitment to collective defense is central to NATO, the treaty does not specify the assistance required to fulfill one’s part in the treaty. This rule only applies directly to those considered members, which is why NATO members are willing to provide arms to Ukraine without deploying forces.
NATO invoked Article 5 for the first time on Sept. 12, 2001, after the 9/11 bombings in New York. The alliance unanimously passed a four-paragraph resolution stating that international threats to security have changed significantly, leading NATO’s then-Secretary-General Lord Robertson to pledge NATO support for the war against terrorism.
NATO has taken action several times since, including the deployment of missiles to the border of Turkey and Syria in 2012, defensive responses to the annexation of Crimea, and counter-responses to the growing influence of the Islamic State.
UKRAINE AND NATO
Ukraine’s leadership has made several gestures toward joining NATO in the past. The former Soviet country began a dialogue in 1991 and has cooperated several times with the alliance. NATO leaders discussed offering membership, only to decline the effort in 2008 due to opposition from Germany and France.
That decision did not stop Ukrainian leaders from pursuing membership, however. In 2018, NATO added Ukraine to its list of aspiring members and later to its list of enhanced opportunity partners in 2020.
While the Ukrainian government has cooperated with NATO interests several times since 1991, the country has not obtained an Action Plan for Membership, an integral first step toward membership, and the country has struggled to get unanimous approval due to its heavy reliance on Russian energy and oil. Its membership prospects have also been diminished by threats from Russian President Vladimir Putin, who has signaled adding Ukraine could start a war with NATO. Putin has stated several times that he will use violent force if Ukraine is brought into NATO, including the potential of nuclear war. He has also attempted to frame NATO’s actions as instigating him into an invasion, rather than him being the instigator.
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After days of signaling his intent to invade, Putin ordered a “special military operation” into Ukraine early Thursday morning local time. Dozens of Ukrainians and hundreds of Russians have been reported as casualties in the conflict so far.
Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov reported Thursday that Russians are incurring serious damages due to the invasion, including the loss of at least five planes, two helicopters, and five tanks. Reznikov urged Ukrainians to take up arms and join the fight.
