PEACE & SECURITY | Creating a more stable world
25 March 2008
U.S. Supports Albania, Croatia, Macedonia for NATO Membership
NATO expansion enhances regional security, stability, prosperity
Washington -- NATO enlargement has been a major success not only in enhancing the trans-Atlantic security alliance, but also in promoting democratic institutions and challenging corrupt practices that inhibit economic development, says a senior U.S. diplomat. He says that these successes would be enhanced by bringing Albania, Croatia and Macedonia into the alliance at the 2008 NATO summit in Bucharest, Romania.
At a recent congressional hearing, Assistant Secretary of State Daniel Fried indicated that the three nations have provided military forces to serve with other NATO-led units in Afghanistan, Kosovo and other global peacekeeping operations. "In short, they have shown a clear commitment to bearing the responsibilities of NATO membership."
But joining NATO is not simply a means to expand the alliance and share military responsibilities. NATO expansion serves a broader role in helping the alliance meet new responsibilities, Fried said.
EXPANSION ENHANCES SECURITY AND PROSPERITY
Philip Gordon, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution in Washington and an expert on NATO and the trans-Atlantic alliance, says the expansion that began in the early 1990s has contributed significantly to security and prosperity in Europe. "The incentive of NATO membership has led aspiring countries to reform their political systems, liberalize their economies, root out corruption, resolve territorial disputes with neighbors, rationalize their military establishments, and improve minority rights," he told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee March 11.
New members have provided support and troops for security and peacekeeping missions in the Balkans and in Afghanistan, and have sent troops to join the U.S.-led coalition in Iraq, he said. "In turn, NATO membership has reassured their populations of political and military solidarity with the United States and members of the European Union, enabling them to focus on improving the well-being of their citizens rather than worrying about the types of military threats they had lived with for centuries."
Within that context, Gordon said, "I support entry into NATO of the current candidates -- Albania, Croatia and the Republic of Macedonia." Each nation has been part of NATO's Membership Action Plan (MAP) process for six years or more, Gordon said, and has made significant progress in reforming political systems, economies and military establishments.
A significant aspect of the three nations' efforts to meet NATO membership is that they have strengthened civilian control of the military and respect for minority rights, he said.
"None is yet a model democracy -- but all are moving in the right direction and have made at least as much progress as those that have preceded them in the accession process. Their accession after years of preparation will also demonstrate the sincerity of NATO's pledge that membership genuinely is open to those European democracies that meet its stringent criteria," Gordon said.
Albania has made steady progress in combating corruption, including the arrests of senior governmental officials and others, substantial progress on judicial reform and progress on laws to increase openness and efficiency in the court system, Fried testified. "In addition to the strong support and leadership on Kosovo, Albania is the largest per-capita contributor to NATO and coalition operations in Afghanistan and Iraq," he told the panel.
Croatia has made significant progress toward political and economic maturity, and is also a strong partner on the battlefield, he said. Macedonia has made significant strides since 2001 in building a multiethnic democracy.
GEORGIA AND UKRAINE
Gordon said NATO membership for Georgia and Ukraine is more controversial because of significant opposition from Russia. In addition, both countries have experienced some degree of political instability in recent years that suggests more progress must be made before membership can be considered.
"NATO enlargement is not and has never been a threat to Russia, which should understand that it can benefit from democracy, stability, and prosperity in Eastern Europe and the Caucasus," Gordon said.
While the United States always has supported the aspirations of Georgia and Ukraine, "they are not ready to be NATO members now, as they themselves recognize," Fried said. "We can help them to help themselves, as they are asking, just as we have helped others, through the Membership Action Plan. MAP is the next step for them, and the timing of that step will be a key issue for the Bucharest Summit."
Fried said that "no amount of outside pressure or intimidation should sway allies from doing what is in NATO's best interests."
Montenegro and Bosnia-Herzegovina joined NATO's Partnerships for Peace in November 2006, and have expressed interest in beginning talks about membership in NATO, "and we believe that NATO should extend those offers at Bucharest," Fried said. However, Gordon said being offered a Membership Action Plan does not guarantee membership immediately or ever. All membership decisions, ultimately, will be taken within NATO by consensus and on a case-by-case basis, he said.
Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Joseph Biden said the prospect of membership encouraged Europe's newly liberated countries to settle long-standing disputes, “to deep root democracy and human rights” and to build competent militaries.
"During the 1990s, NATO became a force for the promotion of a Europe whole and free in ways its founders, I don't think, ever fully imagined," Biden said. "It remains my conviction that we should extend an offer of NATO membership to any country that applies and meets the criteria."
As a strategic matter, Biden said, the admission of Albania, Croatia and Macedonia to NATO would bring the Balkans closer to the European future its people deserve while strengthening regional security.
Senator Richard Lugar, the senior Republican on committee, said that expansion of NATO serves two critical purposes for future security.
"[Albania, Croatia and Macedonia] occupy critical geostrategic locations and are best situated to deter any efforts by any party to destabilize the Balkans through violence. These three candidate countries also have proven their commitment to making meaningful contributions to the International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan," Lugar said.
The full text of prepared testimonies for the hearing is available on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee Web site.
