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Member states of NATO

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For the history of states becoming NATO members, see Enlargement of NATO.
NATO in 2024

NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) is an international military alliance consisting of 32 member states from Europe and North America. It was established at the signing of the North Atlantic Treaty on 4 April 1949. Article 5 of the treaty states that if an armed attack occurs against one of the member states, it shall be considered an attack against all members, and other members shall assist the attacked member, with armed forces if necessary.[1] Article 6 of the treaty limits the scope of Article 5 to the islands north of the Tropic of Cancer, the North American and European mainlands, the entirety of Turkey, and French Algeria, the last of which has been moot since July 1962. Thus, an attack on Hawaii, Puerto Rico, French Guiana, the Falkland Islands, Ceuta or Melilla, among other places, would not trigger an Article 5 response.

Of the 32 member countries, 30 are in Europe and two are in North America. Between 1994 and 1997, wider forums for regional cooperation between NATO and its neighbors were set up, including the Partnership for Peace, the Mediterranean Dialogue initiative, and the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council.

All members have militaries, except for Iceland, which does not have a typical army (but it does have a coast guard and a small unit of civilian specialists for NATO operations). Three of NATO's members are nuclear weapons states: France, the United Kingdom, and the United States. NATO has 12 original founding member states. Three more members joined between 1952 and 1955, and a fourth joined in 1982. Since the end of the Cold War, NATO has added 16 more members from 1999 to 2024.[2]

NATO currently recognizes Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, and Ukraine as aspiring members as part of their Open Doors enlargement policy.[3]

Map of NATO in Europe:
  Current members
  Membership Action Plan
  Countries seeking membership
  Countries where membership is not a goal
  Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO)

Founding members and enlargement[edit]

Main article: Enlargement of NATO

NATO was established on 4 April 1949 via the signing of the North Atlantic Treaty (Washington Treaty). The 12 founding members of the Alliance were: Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Iceland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, the United Kingdom, and the United States.[4]

The various allies all sign the Ottawa Agreement,[5] which is a 1951 document that acts to embody civilian oversight of the Alliance.[5][6]

Current membership consists of 32 countries. In addition to the 12 founding countries, four new members joined during the Cold War: Greece and Turkey (1952), West Germany (1955) and Spain (1982). In 1990, the territory of the former East Germany was added with the reunification of Germany. NATO further expanded after the Cold War, adding the Czech Republic, Hungary, and Poland (1999); Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Slovakia, and Slovenia (2004); Albania and Croatia (2009); Montenegro (2017); North Macedonia (2020); Finland (2023); and Sweden (2024).[4] Of the territories and members added between 1990 and 2024, all except for Finland and Sweden were either formerly part of the Warsaw Pact (including the formerly Soviet Baltic states) or territories of the former Yugoslavia. No countries have left NATO since its founding.

Currently, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization now covers a total area of 27,580,492 km2 (10,648,887 sq mi), since the accession of Sweden on 7 March 2024.

Membership aspirations[edit]

As of March 2024, three additional states have formally informed NATO of their membership aspirations: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, and Ukraine.[3]

List of member states[edit]

The current members and their dates of admission are listed below.

Flag Map Name Capital Accession[8] Population [9][10] Area
[11] 		Military budget as %GDP 2023[12] GDP 2023 (million US$)[13] Languages
Albania Tirana 1 April 2009 002,854,710 28,748 km2 (11,100 sq mi) 1.7 22,743 Albanian
Belgium Brussels 24 August 1949[a] 011,611,419 30,528 km2 (11,787 sq mi) 1.2 630,110 Dutch
French
German
Bulgaria Sofia 29 March 2004 006,885,868 110,879 km2 (42,811 sq mi) 1.8 101,611 Bulgarian
Canada Ottawa 24 August 1949[a] 038,155,012 9,984,670 km2 (3,855,103 sq mi) 1.3 2,140,086 English
French
Croatia Zagreb 1 April 2009 004,060,135 56,594 km2 (21,851 sq mi) 1.8 82,044 Croatian
Czech Republic[b] Prague 12 March 1999 010,510,751 78,867 km2 (30,451 sq mi) 1.5 332,025 Czech
Denmark[c] Copenhagen 24 August 1949[a] 005,854,240 2,210,573 km2 (853,507 sq mi)[d] 2.0 405,199 Danish
Estonia Tallinn 29 March 2004 001,328,701 45,228 km2 (17,463 sq mi) 2.9 40,757 Estonian
Finland Helsinki 4 April 2023 005,535,992 338,455 km2 (130,678 sq mi) 2.4 300,499 Finnish
Swedish
France[e] Paris 24 August 1949[a] 064,531,444 643,427 km2 (248,429 sq mi) 2.1 3,031,778 French
Germany[f] Berlin 6 May 1955
(West Germany)
3 October 1990
(Germany) 		083,408,554 357,022 km2 (137,847 sq mi) 1.5 4,457,366 German
Greece Athens 18 February 1952 010,445,365 131,957 km2 (50,949 sq mi) 3.2 238,275 Greek
Hungary Budapest 12 March 1999 009,709,786 93,028 km2 (35,918 sq mi) 2.1 212,610 Hungarian
Iceland Reykjavík 24 August 1949[a] 000,370,335 103,000 km2 (39,769 sq mi) 0.0 31,020 Icelandic
Italy Rome 059,240,329 301,340 km2 (116,348 sq mi) 1.6 2,255,503 Italian
Latvia Riga 29 March 2004 001,873,919 64,589 km2 (24,938 sq mi) 2.3 43,598 Latvian
Lithuania Vilnius 002,786,651 65,300 km2 (25,212 sq mi) 2.7 77,926 Lithuanian
Luxembourg Luxembourg 24 August 1949[a] 000,639,321 2,586 km2 (998 sq mi) 0.7 85,780 Luxembourgish
French
German
Montenegro Podgorica 5 June 2017 000,627,859 13,812 km2 (5,333 sq mi) 1.6 7,406 Montenegrin
Netherlands[g] Amsterdam 24 August 1949[a] 017,501,696 41,543 km2 (16,040 sq mi)[h] 1.5 1,117,101 Dutch
North Macedonia Skopje 27 March 2020 002,103,330 25,713 km2 (9,928 sq mi) 1.7 14,769 Macedonian
Norway[i] Oslo 24 August 1949[a] 005,403,021 323,802 km2 (125,021 sq mi)[j] 1.6 485,513 Norwegian
Poland Warsaw 12 March 1999 038,307,726 312,685 km2 (120,728 sq mi) 3.8 808,435 Polish
Portugal Lisbon 24 August 1949[a] 010,290,103 92,090 km2 (35,556 sq mi) 1.5 287,421 Portuguese
Romania Bucharest 29 March 2004 019,328,560 238,391 km2 (92,043 sq mi) 1.6 345,894 Romanian
Slovakia Bratislava 005,447,622 49,035 km2 (18,933 sq mi) 2.0 132,122 Slovakian
Slovenia Ljubljana 002,119,410 20,273 km2 (7,827 sq mi) 1.3 68,236 Slovenian
Spain[k] Madrid 30 May 1982 047,486,935 505,370 km2 (195,124 sq mi) 1.5 1,581,151 Spanish
Sweden Stockholm 7 March 2024 010,467,097 450,295 km2 (173,860 sq mi) 1.5 593,268 Swedish
Turkey[l] Ankara 18 February 1952 084,775,404 783,562 km2 (302,535 sq mi) 1.5 1,108,453 Turkish
United Kingdom[m] London 24 August 1949[a] 067,281,039 243,610 km2 (94,058 sq mi) 2.3 3,344,744 English
United States[n] Washington, D.C. 336,997,624 9,833,520 km2 (3,796,743 sq mi) 3.4 27,357,825

Special arrangements[edit]

The three Nordic countries which joined NATO as founding members, Denmark, Iceland and Norway, chose to limit their participation in three areas: there would be no permanent peacetime bases, no nuclear warheads and no Allied military activity (unless invited) permitted on their territory. However, Denmark allowed the U.S. to maintain an existing base, Thule Air Base (now Pituffik Space Base), in Greenland.[14]

From the mid-1960s to the mid-1990s, France pursued a military strategy of independence from NATO under a policy dubbed "Gaullo-Mitterrandism".[15] Nicolas Sarkozy negotiated the return of France to the integrated military command and the Defence Planning Committee in 2009, the latter being disbanded the following year. France remains the only NATO member outside the Nuclear Planning Group and unlike the United States and the United Kingdom, will not commit its nuclear-armed submarines to the alliance.[16][17]

Military personnel[edit]

The following list is constructed from The Military Balance, published annually by the International Institute for Strategic Studies.

Numbers of military personnel
Country[18] Active Reserve Para­mili­tary Total Per 1,000 capita
total active
Albania Albania 10,500 0 500 11,000 3.6 3.4
Belgium Belgium 29,400 5,900 0 35,300 3 2.5
Bulgaria Bulgaria 42,663 3,000 0 45,663 6.6 6.2
Canada Canada 70,500 35,600 5,500 111,600 2.9 1.9
Croatia Croatia 16,700 21,000 3,000 40,700 9.7 4
Czech Republic Czech Republic 27,400 4,200 0 31,600 3 2.6
Denmark Denmark 20,440 45,800 0 66,240 11.2 3.5
Estonia Estonia 7,600 230,000 15,800 253,400 207.7 6.2
Finland Finland 24,250 900,000 14,321 938,571 168.7 4.4
France France 208,750 141,050 175,050 524,850 7.7 3.1
Germany Germany 184,100 50,050 0 234,150 2.9 2.3
Greece Greece 143,300 221,350 4,000 368,650 34.8 13.5
Hungary Hungary 41,600 20,000 12,000 73,600 7.6 4.3
Iceland Iceland 250 250 250 750 2.1 0.7
Italy Italy[o] 175,100 18,300 182,350 375,750 6 2.8
Latvia Latvia 16,700 36,000 0 52,700 28.3 9
Lithuania Lithuania 23,000 90,000 14,150 127,150 46.9 8.5
Luxembourg Luxembourg 940 0 600 1,540 2.4 1.5
Montenegro Montenegro 2,350 2,800 10,100 15,250 25.1 3.9
Netherlands Netherlands 41,543 6,643 6,500 54,686 3.2 2.4
North Macedonia North Macedonia 8,000 26,850 7,600 42,450 19.9 3.8
Norway Norway 25,400 40,000 0 65,400 11.9 4.6
Poland Poland 164,500 200,000 75,400 439,900 11.5 4.3
Portugal Portugal 33,200 211,700 24,700 269,600 26.3 3.2
Romania Romania 72,000 55,000 79,900 206,900 9.7 3.4
Slovakia Slovakia 19,500 0 0 19,500 3.6 3.6
Slovenia Slovenia 7,500 26,200 5,950 39,650 18.9 3.6
Spain Spain 133,282 15,450 75,800 224,532 4.8 2.8
Sweden Sweden 24,400 32,900 0 57,300 5.4 2.3
Turkey Turkey 690,811 380,700 192,534 1,264,045 15.3 8.4
United Kingdom United Kingdom 196,453 78,600 0 275,053 4.2 3
United States United States 1,598,287 1,072,543 0 2,670,830 8 4.8
NATO NATO 3,869,402 3,768,103 870,271 8,507,776 8.7 4

Military expenditures[edit]

Military spending of the US compared to 29 other NATO member countries (all except Sweden) (US$ millions).[p]

  United States (67.1%)
  All other NATO countries total[q][r] (32.90%)

Total military spending of NATO member countries except the United States, and Sweden (US$ millions).[p][s]

  Greece (1.75%)
  Estonia (0.28%)
  Portugal (0.99%)
  Montenegro (0.03%)
  Lithuania (0.51%)
  Norway (2.05%)
  Turkey (4.42%)
  Latvia (0.25%)
  Denmark (1.91%)
  Croatia (0.34%)
  North Macedonia (0.062%)
  Romania (1.32%)
  Hungary (1.01%)
  Bulgaria (0.45%)
  Italy (7.63%)
  France (13.47%)
  Poland (7.50%)
  Spain (4.57%)
  Slovenia (0.21%)
  United Kingdom (18.03%)
  Slovakia (0.62%)
  Canada (6.56%)
  Germany (17.26%)
  Netherlands (3.85%)
  Other (4.928%)

United States and Sweden omitted – see above

The defence spending of the United States is more than double the defence spending of all other NATO members combined.[19] Criticism of the fact that many member states were not contributing their fair share in accordance with the international agreement by then US president Donald Trump caused various reactions from American and European political figures, ranging from ridicule to panic.[20][21][22] While NATO members have committed to spending at least 2% of their Gross Domestic Product (GDP) on defence, most of them did not meet that goal in 2023 [23]

Total Military budget of European NATO countries (excluding Turkey) as a percentage of US military budget. Chinese and Russian military spending included for comparison[24]
Member state Popu­lation[t] GDP
(nomi­nal)
($billions)[u] 		Defence expenditure (US$)[u] Person­nel[u]
Total
($mil­lions)		 % real GDP Per capita
 Albania 3,101,621 23.36 401 1.72 93 6,600
 Belgium 11,913,633 636.07 7,670 1.21 537 21,400
 Bulgaria 6,827,736 103.59 1,933 1.87 181 26,600
 Canada 38,516,736 2,123.01 28,140 1.33 591 66,800
 Croatia 4,169,239 83.01 1,450 1.75 291 14,000
 Czech Republic 10,706,242 334.94 5,108 1.53 305 27,700
 Denmark 6,057,361 412.37 8,199 2.00 1,208 16,700
 Estonia 1,202,762 41.50 1,198 2.89 587 7,300
 Finland 5,614,571 305.42 7,500 2.46 1,146 31,000
 France 62,819,428 3,050.30 57,815 1.90 734 207,300
 Germany 84,220,184 4,473.00 74,085 1.66 712 181,700
 Greece 10,497,595 245.38 7,495 3.05 632 111,000
 Hungary 9,670,009 209.41 4,338 2.07 336 20,100
 Iceland 360,872 31.30 — — — —
 Italy 61,021,855 2,223.01 32,750 1.47 494 170,700
 Latvia 1,821,750 44.60 1,052 2.37 404 6,700
 Lithuania 2,655,755 79.13 2,177 2.75 508 17,900
 Luxembourg 660,924 59.61 603 1.01 730 900
 Montenegro 602,445 7.45 115 1.55 128 1,700
 Netherlands 17,463,930 1,122.05 16,538 1.63 818 40,800
 North Macedonia 2,133,410 15.80 268 1.70 96 5,700
 Norway 5,600,850 488.19 8,788 1.80 1,445 24,000
 Poland 37,991,766 819.82 32,165 3.92 655 202,300
 Portugal 10,223,150 288.37 4,254 1.48 337 22,400
 Romania 18,326,327 352.64 5,655 1.60 200 64,000
 Slovakia 5,425,319 130.90 2,682 2.05 387 13,800
 Slovenia 2,099,790 68.61 914 1.33 342 5,700
 Spain 47,051,085 1,582.94 19,638 1.24 350 110,600
 Sweden 10,536,338
 Turkey 83,593,483 1,201.56 18,965 1.58 228 463,700
 United Kingdom 68,502,956 3,398.27 77,384 2.28 1,077 139,500
 United States 338,229,980 27,343.45 875,603 3.24 2,101 1,317,000
 NATO 969,619,192 51,298.96 1,304,886 2.54 1,113 3,346,000

Political and popular support[edit]

Pew Research Center's 2016 survey among its member states showed that while most countries viewed NATO positively, most NATO members preferred keeping their military spending the same. The response to whether their country should militarily aid another NATO country if it were to get into a serious military conflict with Russia was also mixed. Roughly half or fewer in six of the eight countries surveyed say their country should use military force if Russia attacks a neighboring country that is a NATO ally. And at least half in three of the eight NATO countries say that their government should not use military force in such circumstances. The strongest opposition to responding with armed force is in Germany (58%), followed by France (53%) and Italy (51%). More than half of Americans (56%) and Canadians (53%) are willing to respond to Russian military aggression against a fellow NATO country. A plurality of the British (49%) and Poles (48%) would also live up to their Article 5 commitment. The Spanish are divided on the issue: 48% support it, 47% oppose.[27][28]

Notes[edit]

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Founding member of NATO.
  2. ^ Officially referred to by the name Czechia. (See Czech Republic#Name.)
  3. ^ Denmark consists of Denmark proper, the Faroe Islands and Greenland.
  4. ^ including Faroe Islands and Greenland.
  5. ^ Excluding all overseas territories of France apart from Saint Pierre and Miquelon.
  6. ^ Germany initially joined NATO as West Germany. The former country of East Germany became part of NATO after German reunification.
  7. ^ Only the European part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is part of NATO.
  8. ^ Figure includes the islands of Bonaire, Saba and Sint Eustatius, but they don't fall under the NATO treaty.
  9. ^ Excluding Bouvet Island.
  10. ^ Including Jan Mayen, and Svalbard.
  11. ^ Excluding the Plazas de soberanía region.
  12. ^ Officially referred to by the name Türkiye. (See Name of Turkey.)
  13. ^ Including Gibraltar and Bermuda. The crown dependencies and other overseas territories are excluded.
  14. ^ Only includes the continental states, Alaska and Washington, D.C.. Hawaii and the territories of the United States don't fall under the NATO treaty.
  15. ^ The paramilitary forces of Italy consist of the Carabinieri and the Guardia di Finanza.
  16. ^ a b Country order is the same as the preceding chart (military personnel per 1,000 capita) to maintain the same country colours between charts.
  17. ^ Except Finland
  18. ^ Except Sweden
  19. ^ The pie chart format does not allow as many slices as there are countries in NATO, so certain countries (Albania, Belgium, Czech Republic, Finland, Iceland and Luxembourg) have been combined into a single slice.
  20. ^ Population data is based on a 2023 estimate by the Central Intelligence Agency in The World Factbook.[25]
  21. ^ a b c Defence expenditure, GDP and personnel data are based on a March 2024 press release from NATO.[26]

References[edit]

Citations[edit]

  1. ^ "The North Atlantic Treaty". North Atlantic Treaty Organization. 4 April 1949. Archived from the original on 1 March 2022. Retrieved 16 June 2008.
  2. ^ Center, Notre Dame International Security (23 March 2023). "The Addition of NATO Members Over Time (1949–2023)". ND International Security Center. Archived from the original on 21 January 2024. Retrieved 11 July 2023.
  3. ^ a b "Enlargement and Article 10". NATO. 10 June 2022. Archived from the original on 9 June 2021. Retrieved 1 July 2022. Currently, five partner countries have declared their aspirations to NATO membership: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Finland, Georgia, Sweden and Ukraine.
  4. ^ a b NATO. "Member countries". NATO. Archived from the original on 19 November 2014. Retrieved 29 June 2022.
  5. ^ a b Mosquera, Andrés B. Muñoz (2019). "The North Atlantic Treaty: Article 9 and NATO's Institutionalization". Volume 34. Emory International Law Review. Archived from the original on 26 November 2022. Retrieved 3 July 2022. Really, the Agreement on the Status of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation, National Representatives and International Staff signed in Ottawa
  6. ^ "03. Agreement on the Status of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation, National Representatives and International Staff, done at Ottawa September 20, 1951". US Department of State. Archived from the original on 30 November 2022. Retrieved 3 July 2022.
  7. ^ a b NATO. "Enlargement and Article 10". NATO. Archived from the original on 11 March 2018. Retrieved 29 June 2022.
  8. ^ "Member countries". NATO. 11 March 2024. Archived from the original on 14 March 2024.
  9. ^ "World Population Prospects 2022". United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division. Retrieved 17 July 2022.
  10. ^ "World Population Prospects 2022: Demographic indicators by region, subregion and country, annually for 1950-2100" (XSLX) ("Total Population, as of 1 July (thousands)"). United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division. Retrieved 17 July 2022.
  11. ^ "Field Listing :: Area". Central Intelligence Agency. Archived from the original on 13 June 2007. Retrieved 3 March 2011.
  12. ^ "Military expenditure by country as percentage of gross domestic product, 2023". Stockholm International Peace Research Institute. 5 July 2024. Retrieved 5 July 2024.
  13. ^ "World Economic Outlook Database, April 2024". IMF.org. International Monetary Fund. 16 April 2024. Retrieved 16 April 2024.
  14. ^ "Denmark and NATO – 1949". Archived from the original on 13 April 2022. Retrieved 13 April 2022.
  15. ^ "Why the concept of Gaullo-Mitterrandism is still relevant". IRIS. 29 April 2019. Archived from the original on 7 March 2022. Retrieved 7 March 2022.
  16. ^ Cody, Edward (12 March 2009). "After 43 Years, France to Rejoin NATO as Full Member". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on 26 October 2017. Retrieved 19 December 2011.
  17. ^ Stratton, Allegra (17 June 2008). "Sarkozy military plan unveiled". The Guardian. UK. Archived from the original on 7 March 2016. Retrieved 17 December 2016.
  18. ^ The International Institute for Strategic Studies (February 2022). The Military Balance 2022. London: Routledge. ISBN 978-1-032-27900-8. ISSN 0459-7222.
  19. ^ Friedman, George (24 January 2017). "Where Does The Relationship Between NATO And The U.S. Go From Here?". Huffington Post. Archived from the original on 29 January 2024. Retrieved 29 January 2024.
  20. ^ Birnbaum, Michael; Gibbons-Neff, Thomas (8 April 2023). "NATO allies boost defense spending in the wake of Trump criticism". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Archived from the original on 1 September 2022. Retrieved 29 January 2024.
  21. ^ Mortimer, Caroline (19 March 2017). "Ex-US ambassador in withering criticism of Trump on Nato". The Independent. Archived from the original on 3 April 2023. Retrieved 29 January 2024.
  22. ^ Ridgwell, Henry (25 January 2017). "Shaken by Trump's Criticism of NATO, Europe Mulls Building Own Military Force". Voice Of America. Archived from the original on 3 April 2023. Retrieved 29 January 2024.
  23. ^ Gray, Andrew; Siebold, Sabine (13 February 2024). "What did Trump say about NATO funding and what is Article 5?". Retrieved 7 July 2024.
  24. ^ "SIPRI Military Expenditure Database". Stockholm International Peace Research Institute. 2023. doi:10.55163/cqgc9685. Archived from the original on 2 May 2019. Retrieved 29 January 2024.
  25. ^ "Country Comparisons — Population". Central Intelligence Agency. Archived from the original on 1 September 2021. Retrieved 1 January 2022.
  26. ^ "Defence Expenditure of NATO Countries (2014–2023)" (PDF). NATO. March 2024. Retrieved 5 July 2024.
  27. ^ Cuddington, Danielle (6 July 2016). "Support for NATO is widespread among member nations". Pew Research. Archived from the original on 4 April 2023. Retrieved 15 August 2017.
  28. ^ Emmott, Robin (23 May 2017). "U.S. would defend NATO despite Trump's criticism, Europeans believe: study". Reuters. Archived from the original on 4 April 2023. Retrieved 28 January 2024.

Bibliography[edit]

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