150 likes | 441 Views
NATO : PAST AND PRESENT. What does NATO stand for and what does it do?. NORTH ATLANTIC TREATY ORGANIZATION. Provided for the collective security of Western Europe against the threat of Soviet invasion. I. Why was NATO created?. Winston Churchill’s “iron curtain” speech
E N D
What does NATO stand for and what does it do? NORTH ATLANTIC TREATY ORGANIZATION Provided for the collective security of Western Europe against the threat of Soviet invasion.
I. Why was NATO created? • Winston Churchill’s “iron curtain” speech • US would rather provide economic aid (Marshall Plan) than be part of a military alliance
I. Why was NATO created? • C. Britain and France press for US military support • D. Events in Czechoslovakia and the Berlin Airlift change US thinking about a military alliance • The North Atlantic Treaty is signed in April of 1949 between US, Canada, and 10 other Western European nations (look at map)
II. What did NATO do during the Cold War? • Adds new member nations (such as Turkey and West Germany. • It acts as a security organization and probably stemmed any possible Soviet expansionist plans during the Cold War – “Warsaw Pact” nations
UNITED STATES CANADA
III. How has the end of the Cold War changed NATO’s role? • March 31, 1991 – The “Warsaw Pact” comes to an end • 1997 – NATO adds former Cold War enemies (Warsaw Pact) and continues to do so. • What should NATO’s role be now that there is NO Soviet “menace” to protect Western Europe against?
III. How has the end of the Cold War changed NATO’s role? D. NATO engages in peacekeeping work in Bosnia during the 1990s E. 1999 – NATO has its first military engagement in bombing Serbia – controversial – why?
IV. NATO and the War on Terror • September 11, 2001 – For the first time, NATO invokes Article 5, saying that an attack on the US was an attack on the entire NATO alliance. • Role of current US Presidents (Clinton, Bush 2) in directing NATO
IV. NATO and the War on Terror Current Activities • Afghanistan – 2003 : NATO agrees to provide a security force – its FIRST mission outside the North Atlantic Area • Iraq – Providing training to security forces
From NATO action in the former Yugoslavia – NATO as peacekeeper or aggressor?
What does this suggest about the role of the US President in directing NATO? N