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| Updated: 02-Feb-2006 | NATO On-line library |
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Security through Partnership Origins and evolution of Partnership
November 1989 saw the fall of the Berlin Wall, signalling the end of the Cold War. Within a short period, the remarkable pace of change in Central and Eastern Europe left NATO faced with a new and very different set of security challenges. Political change on an unprecedented scale had opened up great opportunities for enhancing security in Europe, but would inevitably involve new uncertainties and the potential for instability. What could be done to seize the opportunity to set European security affairs on a new, more positive path after the confrontations of the Cold War? What steps could be taken to restore normality to relations among all the countries of Europe, East and West? What help could be given to the states of Central and Eastern Europe to consolidate their newly found independence and to realise their ambitions to participate fully as democratic countries, both regionally and in the wider world, in addressing multinational security concerns? Allied leaders responded at their summit meeting in London, in July 1990, by extending a “hand of friendship” across the old East-West divide and proposing a new cooperative relationship with all the countries of Central and Eastern Europe. The scene was set for the establishment in December 1991 of the North Atlantic Cooperation Council (NACC), a forum which would bring together NATO and its new Partner countries to discuss issues of common concern. (Such was the pace of change in Europe at the time that the first meeting of the NACC itself witnessed a historic event: as the final communiqué was being agreed, the Soviet ambassador announced that the Soviet Union had dissolved during the meeting and that he now only represented the Russian Federation.) This sea-change in attitudes was enshrined in a new strategic concept for the Alliance, issued in November 1991, which adopted a broader approach to security. The opportunities for achieving Alliance objectives through political means were greater than ever before. While the defence dimension remained indispensable, more prominence could now be given to economic, social and environmental issues as a means of promoting stability and security in the Euro-Atlantic area as a whole. Dialogue and cooperation would be essential parts of the approach required to manage the diversity of challenges facing the Alliance. With the Cold War over, the key goals were now to reduce the risk of conflict arising out of misunderstanding or design and to better manage crises affecting the security of the Allies; to increase mutual understanding and confidence among all European states; and to expand the opportunities for genuine partnership in dealing with common security problems. In the immediate post-Cold War period, NACC consultations focused on residual Cold War security concerns such as the withdrawal of Russian troops from the Baltic States. Political cooperation was also launched on a number of security and defence-related issues. The NACC broke new ground in many ways. However, it focused on multilateral, political dialogue and lacked the possibility of each Partner developing individual cooperative relations with NATO. This changed in 1994 with the launch of the Partnership for Peace (PfP), a major programme of practical bilateral cooperation between NATO and individual Partner countries, which represented a significant leap forward in the cooperative process. And, in 1997, the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council (EAPC) was created to replace the NACC and to build on its achievements, paving the way for the development of an enhanced and more operational partnership. “This Partnership is established as an expression of a joint conviction that stability and security in the Euro-Atlantic area can be achieved only through cooperation and common action. Protection and promotion of fundamental freedoms and human rights, and safeguarding of freedom, justice, and peace through democracy are shared values fundamental to the Partnership.” (Partnership for Peace: Framework Document – Brussels Summit, 10 January 1994) The essence of partnership and cooperation at the multinational level consists of regular consultations and cooperative activities designed to build transparency and confidence throughout the Euro-Atlantic area. At the bilateral level it calls for the development of a practical working relationship between individual Partner countries and NATO, tailored to their particular situations and requirements. The Partnership process involves building dialogue and understanding between all the countries involved, many of which are former adversaries as members of opposing alliances, or have had long-standing regional, territorial, political, ethnic or religious disputes. Joint activities aimed at finding common solutions to common security challenges have led to important achievements in overcoming past prejudices and in establishing a clear vision of the mutual benefits to be gained from cooperation. Since the launch of the Partnership process, remarkable progress has been made, even if there have been set-backs and difficulties, which were perhaps unavoidable given the complex process of political, economic and social change taking place in Central and Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union. The EAPC and the PfP programme have steadily developed their own dynamic, as successive steps have been taken by NATO and its Partner countries to extend security cooperation, building on the partnership arrangements they have created. As NATO has transformed over the years to meet the new challenges of the evolving security environment, Partnership has developed. To retain its dynamism and relevance to the Alliance, the activities and mechanisms of Partnership have had to be adapted to meet NATO’s new priorities (see chapter on “Essential mechanisms”). Equally, the Partnership has had to be deepened and broadened to meet the aspirations of different Partner countries and remain an attractive proposition to them. Two rounds of NATO enlargement have changed the balance between Allies and Partners. As of March 2004, there were more Allies than Partners – and the remaining Partners are a very diverse group. They include Balkan countries still dealing with the legacies of their past, the strategically important but underdeveloped countries of the Caucasus and Central Asia, and the Western European non-aligned states. While some are in the process of developing their defence structures and capabilities, others are able to contribute significant forces to NATO-led operations and to offer fellow Partner countries advice, training and assistance in various areas. Today, 20 Partners use the EAPC to consult regularly with the 26 Allies and to develop cooperation on issues encompassing many different aspects of defence and security. Their military forces frequently exercise and interact together; their soldiers serve alongside each other in NATO-led peacekeeping operations; and Allies and Partners are working together in common cause against the threat of terrorism. No-one at the time the Cold War ended would have predicted this dramatic evolution in the Euro-Atlantic strategic environment. The original objective of NATO’s partnership policy was to break down barriers and to build security through dialogue and cooperation. Today, the objectives are much more ambitious, for Partner countries are engaged with NATO in tackling 21st century security challenges, including terrorism, the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, and failed states. Over the years, 30 countries have joined the Partnership – Albania, Armenia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Finland, Georgia, Hungary, Ireland, Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova, Poland, Romania, Russia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Sweden, Switzerland, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia*, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine and Uzbekistan. Special relationships have been developed with Russia and Ukraine since 1997, with the signing of the NATO-Russia Founding Act on Mutual Relations, Cooperation and Security and the NATO-Ukraine Charter on a Distinctive Partnership. Relations with Russia have since been intensified with the creation in 2002 of the NATO-Russia Council, in which the Allies and Russia meet on an equal basis. Steps were taken to deepen and broaden the NATO-Ukraine relationship in November 2002 with the adoption of the NATO-Ukraine Action Plan, which supports Ukraine ’s reform efforts on the road to full integration in Euro-Atlantic security structures. Ten Partner countries have become Allies. The Czech Republic, Hungary and Poland joined the Alliance in 1999, followed by Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia in 2004. Three candidate countries are working to prepare themselves for future membership, namely Albania, Croatia and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia.* Bosnia and Herzegovina and Serbia and Montenegro also hope to join the Partnership for Peace and the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council. NATO supports their aspirations, but has set requirements that need to be met first. These include full cooperation with the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, in particular the detention of Radovan Karadzic and Ratko Mladic, the most notorious war-crimes suspects. In the meantime, NATO is already supporting defence reform in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Limited security cooperation is also underway with Serbia and Montenegro, including the participation of military officers and civilians in NATO orientation courses aimed at familiarising them with the Alliance, crisis-management issues, peace-support operations and civil-military cooperation. *Turkey recognises the Republic of Macedonia with its constitutional name 
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| © NATO - OTAN 2005 - | NATO Public Diplomacy Division, 1110 Brussels, Belgium - E-mail: natodoc@hq.nato.int |
