NATO 75th Anniversary

NATO was formed in fear of the Soviet Union's growing position of power in Europe, especially after the Communists' seizure of power in Czechoslovakia in 1948. At the heart of the treaty is Article 5, which states that an attack on one NATO country is an attack on the entire alliance.
NATO had 12 member states when it was created. Norway was involved from the start, which marked a turning point for Norwegian foreign policy. Negotiations for a Scandinavian defence federation had to be scrapped because of a split between Norway and Denmark, which wanted a Western security guarantee, and Sweden, which wanted to continue its policy of neutrality.

With the escalation of the Cold War beyond the 1950s and the outbreak of the Korean War, West Germany was included as a member in 1955. The Soviet Union responded to this with the creation of the Warsaw Pact the same year.

Today, 31 countries are members of NATO. Its headquarters are located in Brussels, and Jens Stoltenberg has been the organisation's secretary-general since 2014.