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In 1949, there were 12 NATO members.
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- Belgium
- Canada
- Denmark
- France
- Iceland
- Italy
- Luxembourg
- Netherlands
- Norway
- Portugal
- The United Kingdom
- The United States
In 1952, 13, Greece and 14, Turkey were added.
1955 brought 15. West Germany into the fold.
1982, 16. Spain was added.
In 1999, no longer obliged to the Warsaw Pact, former Soviet allies turned their eyes toward NATO. After the fall of the Soviet Union, the Warsaw Pact no longer obligated the US. The nations formerly under Soviet control never wanted to be in that position again and looked to NATO for security.
Three former Warsaw Pact members were admitted into NATO:
17. The Czech Republic (formerly Czechoslovakia)
18. Hungary
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19. Poland
2004
2004 brought the largest increase in NATO members since the Alliance’s foundation. Perhaps even more notable, though, is republics formerly of the Soviet Union were now joining (Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania).
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- Bulgaria (formerly of the Warsaw Pact)
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- Estonia
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- Latvia
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- Lithuania
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- Romania (formerly of the Warsaw Pact)
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- Slovakia
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- Slovenia (successor to Yugoslavia)
2009
In 2009, NATO’s foothold in Eastern Europe grew firmer:
27. Albania (formerly of the Warsaw Pact)
28. Croatia (successor to Yugoslavia)
2017 and 2020
These additions to NATO are both successor states to Yugoslavia:
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- Montenegro (in 2017)
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- North Macedonia (in 2020)
2023 and 2024
The Russo-Ukrainian War, and the escalation of which beginning on February 24, 2022, brought NATO’s growth into the foreground of foreign policy debates at the time. Russia’s full-scale invasion also prompted Finland and Sweden to officially apply and were eventually accepted into the alliance.
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Finland (in 2023)
- Sweden (in 2024)
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With NATO recognizing Bosnia and Herzegovina (successor to Yugoslavia), Georgia, and Ukraine (both former Soviet Republics) as aspiring members, does Russia’s leadership feel a pressure of NATO coming right up to their western doorstep? Read more at NDISC (the Notre Dame International Security Center.
The man in this clip is wise:
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 2, 2025
None of this shows our presence in Ukraine, which included Biolabs. It also doesn’t reflect Western interference in Ukraine since 2014.
In 2014, Senator Chris Murphy bragged about the United States successfully overthrowing Ukraine’s government:
This is why Putin invaded Ukraine. pic.twitter.com/GIsfe6yBUt
— Suhr Majesty™ (@ULTRA_MAJESTY) March 3, 2025
The current debate centers around a difference of opinion. Ukraine wants to be in NATO or have the same security guarantees as being a NATO member. On the other side is Donald Trump who doesn’t want to remain in Ukraine risking World War.
NATO is an enormous, expensive bureaucracy that no longer follows its mission as a North Atlantic Defensive Alliance. It is belligerent, and its leaders overturn governments. It doesn’t make anyone safe, but pro-NATO activists will tell you it is necessary.
Russia ruthlessly invaded and Zelensky turned it into a human meat grinder.
We need Russia and Ukraine at the bargaining table.
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