タグ: 1949

NATO’s Article 5 – What Does it Really Mean Today?

                     by David Parmer / Tokyo

“All for one and one for all. United we stand divided we fall” Alexandre Dumas The Three Musketeers, 1844.

The world was a lot different in 1949 when the North Atlantic Treaty Organization was formed and the North Atlantic Treaty was signed in Washington on April 4 of that year. Back then, in what would become to be called “the postwar period” the Soviet Union and its allies were seen as the enemy and further Russian expansion seemed like a real possibility. To prevent this, 12 countries banded together and came up with the North Atlantic Treaty to protect each other from possible Russian aggression.

From the beginning the purpose was, and still remains, mutual support. The crux of this commitment can be found in in Article 5:

The Parties agree that an armed attack against one or more of them in Europe or North America 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-defense recognized by Article 51 of the Charter of the United Nations, will assist the Party or Parties so attacked by taking forthwith, individually and in concert with the other Parties, such action as it deems necessary, including the use of armed force, to restore and maintain the security of the North Atlantic area.

Any such armed attack and all measures taken as a result thereof shall immediately be reported to the Security Council. Such measures shall be terminated when the Security Council has taken the measures necessary to restore and maintain international peace and security.

The definition of an “attack” as written in Article 5 is spelled out in Article 6.

For the purpose of Article 5, an armed attack on one or more of the Parties is deemed to include an armed attack:

  • on the territory of any of the Parties in Europe or North America, on the Algerian Departments of France 2, on the territory of Turkey or on the Islands under the jurisdiction of any of the Parties in the North Atlantic area north of the Tropic of Cancer;
  • on the forces, vessels, or aircraft of any of the Parties, when in or over these territories or any other area in Europe in which occupation forces of any of the Parties were stationed on the date when the Treaty entered into force or the Mediterranean Sea or the North Atlantic area north of the Tropic of Cancer.

The first time that Article 5 was invoked was the day after the terrorist attack on New York’s World Trade Center on September 12, 2001, and the Allies responded according to their Article 5 commitment.

It could be argued that for 71 years the NATO alliance has worked to stem Soviet and Russian aggression, and that it greatly added to the peace and stability of not only Europe but also the world. And yet, recently attitudes and perceptions seem to be divided or at least more diverse.

To begin with, strong criticism of NATO has come from US president Donald Trump who routinely chastises NATO members for not meeting their commitments of 2% of GDP as agreed upon in 2014. Trump has hinted that the US will cut back on its support of NATO. While the 2% has not been met across the board, reports show European defense spending rising on an upward curve.

Equally interesting is a report by Pew Research in 2019 that of the 16 states queried, people who said that their country should NOT answer the call from an Ally under article 5 was at 50% while those who said that their country should defend an Ally stood at just 38%. The same poll showed that generally people across Europe (except Russia) have a generally good impression of NATO, even if they don’t think they should honor Article 5.

Is NATO obsolete? Is it time to re-write the Atlantic Treaty? There are new and complex problems facing the alliance including an inward-turning America and the status of NATO member Turkey that is fighting in Syria and sustaining casualties, and who has bought Russian air defense equipment. What thoughts do you have about NATO and mutual defense treaties? Please let us know.

NATO Viewed Favorably Across Member States Pew Research Institute

NATO, Official text North Atlantic Treaty

Photo: The Three Musketeers (1921) Wikimedia Commons

China at 70 – Where From Here?

October 1, 2019 marked exactly 70 years since the late Mao Zedong stood atop the gate at Beijing’s Tiananmen Square and declared that the Chinese people had stood up, and henceforth China would be the People’s Republic of China.

The 70 year period was not without its challenges including armed clashed with three other world powers, the US, India and Russia and the growing, flowering, decline and growing again of one of the world’s biggest economies. Add to this the tumult brought about by the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution which was aimed at revitalizing the revolution and keeping ideology pure, but which resulted in the death of countless citizens and the doling out of large doses of misery to millions of others.

With Reform and Opening up in the early 1980s the pent up energy of the Chinese people was released and the world saw a real miracle as so many in the new China were lifted out of poverty as the economy showed almost unstoppable growth. China rose to be the #2 economy in the world defying all odds.

While economic growth has slowed, China is now set on a course to become a “moderately prosperous society” by the middle of this century. This vision, combined with the establishment of the Belt and Road initiative to revitalize the Silk Road are both visions of China’s future set forth by its president, Xi Jinping.

China is not without its problems going forward however. The ongoing trade war with the United States is one major headache. The Uighur minority in Xinjiang is another matter that must be addressed with wisdom and fairness. And now Hong Kong seems a problem with no easy solution that must be addressed in a creative way to ensure democracy and guarantee the rule of law. China’s claim to the South China Sea and its relations with Taiwan are also thorny issues going forward.

So what will the future be for China? A “moderately prosperous” society for the majority of its people as President Xi Jinping suggests, Or a rethinking of the China Dream in light of 21st century realities?

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