NATO is an organization that’s endangering world peace, especially with respect to Russia. In doing so, its member states have been violating their own NATO Treaty commitments.
NATO military forces have intervened in a major way in Libya (March-October, 2011), in the old Yugoslavia (1992-2004, specifically Bosnia, Herzegovina, Serbia, Croatia and Kosovo), and in Afghanistan (2001-2014). It’s interesting that none of these countries were or are in NATO. That is, NATO attacked in other countries; and there were no threats or armed attacks on NATO members to justify these attacks.
NATO currently is intervening in Ukraine through a variety of joint ventures, from political support to military exercises. It’s interesting that Ukraine also is not in NATO. Again, there are no threats or armed attacks on NATO members to justify this intervention.
The situation in Syria is dangerous because of various interventions from foreigners, including NATO members.
Turkey became a NATO member in 1952 when it signed the North Atlantic. The Treaty begins by saying
“The Parties to this Treaty reaffirm their faith in the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations and their desire to live in peace with all peoples and all governments.”
The UN Charter calls for non-interference in the internal affairs of other states. It is interesting that Turkey has systematically violated this commitment by supporting rebel forces in Syria.
The Treaty that Turkey signed also binds Turkey
“to refrain in their international relations from the threat or use of force in any manner inconsistent with the purposes of the United Nations.”
The phrase “in any manner” is exceedingly broad. It rules out even indirect subversion by Turkey or any NATO member state to help forces that are attempting to overthrow the Syrian government. It is interesting that several NATO members other than Turkey are also openly violating this article in Syria (France, the United States of America, Canada and the United Kingdom).
In addition, at a NATO summit meeting held in September of 2014, it is interesting that several additional NATO states (Denmark, Poland and Italy) committed to intervening in Iraq and Syria: “The NATO allies agreed to support anti-ISIS forces in Iraq and Syria via supplies and air support.”
(Other non-NATO countries are also intervening in Syria, such as Israel, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar, Jordan and the United Arab Emirates. They are violating their UN Charter commitments.)
All of this NATO military intervention is not in accord with Article 3 of the Treaty, which says that members “will maintain and develop their individual and collective capacity to resist armed attack” and aims to defend against “an armed attack against one or more of them in Europe or North America…”
It is interesting that Libya, Afghanistan, the old Yugoslavia and Syria didn’t pose any threat of an armed attack on NATO or any of its member states.
By offending the provisions of its own Treaty, NATO is a rogue organization.
NATO’s provocations regarding Russia are exceedingly serious, and they are another important instance of NATO as a rogue organization.
When NATO now repeats over and over that Russia poses an “existential threat” to NATO and its members, this is self-aggrandizing propaganda, because there is not the slightest evidence in its support. Indeed, the evidence is the very opposite. NATO has been an actual threat and an actual war-maker in several countries that posed it no threat of armed attack whatsoever.
It is interesting that the NATO Treaty contains no measures of enforcement to deal with the contingency that one or more of its own members systematically violate its provisions. This is what several of its members have done.
What is to be done when NATO behaves in an outlaw fashion, going against the treaty law that it itself has erected?
What is to be done when NATO itself increases the prospects for large scale war?
What is to be done when NATO becomes a rogue organization?
What is to be done when NATO’s mechanisms can be brought into play by one or more of its members for their own narrow political or imperial or expansionist aims?
What is to be done when one of its members, like Turkey, systematically engages in criminal behavior or seeks to gain NATO intervention, seriously endangering the peace, by provocative maneuvers?
NATO is endangering world peace. There was never a need to sustain it, much less expand it, after the USSR dissolved. NATO’s constant and increasing pressure on Russia’s neighbors must cause Russia to defend itself ever more strongly. This will be taken by NATO advocates as proof of NATO’s critique of Russia, when it is nothing more than a rational response to NATO’s own advances and provocations.
Isolating Russia and sanctioning Russia with the aim of fomenting dissident groups within Russia and causing domestic turmoil therein is bound to lead to serious conflict and confrontations of Russia and NATO at some point. The most militaristic on both sides will be encouraged to come to the fore, drowning out the moderates East and West. War could eventually result, and it is highly likely to involve nuclear weapons and attacks.
NATO should be curtailed and dissolved at the earliest possible opportunity. It has been following an improper course for 25 years.
The proper course has been the same ever since the USSR dissolved. That course was rejected by the U.S. Treat Russia with respect. Encourage good relations. Improve matters by steps that are win-win propositions. Avoid needless antagonisms. Learn each other’s histories in an atmosphere of mutual respect. Work together on common problems that can benefit from cooperation. Don’t attempt to remake each other’s political systems. Avoid hasty judgments. ratchet down the fear and paranoia. Don’t try to secure advantages by sneaky methods or by monopolies. Live and let live.
It is interesting that NATO is not doing any of the things that constitute a proper course of action with respect to Russia. For that reason, NATO should be curtailed and dissolved.
12:58 pm on December 26, 2015
