What Is NATO and Which Countries Are Members? – The Wall Street Journal

Russian President Vladimir Putin has sought to justify his invasion of Ukraine in part based on a threat he sees to his country from the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and the alliances offer to Ukraine of potential membership. The alliance spent its first four decades defending Western Europe, North America and Turkey against possible threats from the Soviet Union. Since the USSRs disintegration in 1991, NATO has added members from the former Soviet bloc and sought new missions because Russia wasnt seen as a serious threat for most of the past 30 years.

Following Russias seizure from Ukraine of the Crimean Peninsula and support for separatists in Ukraines east, NATO members have reinforced their defenses in countries near Russia. The alliance held an emergency summit on March 24, attended by President Biden and other NATO leaders to address ways to strengthen the alliance and provide more assistance to Ukraine. NATO says it is purely a defensive organization.

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What Is NATO and Which Countries Are Members? - The Wall Street Journal