International studies, Vol. II No. 3, 2002.
Original scientific paper
NATO's Second Post-Cold War Enlargement
Radovan Vukadinović
; Faculty of Political Science, University of Zagreb
Abstract
New round of NATO enlargement is taking place in a period when the North Atlantic organization seeks after possibilities of its own survival, transformation and future existence as a principal basis of Euro-Atlantic relations. Even though it was expected that after September 11 accession of new members would be quite restricted, it seems that an attitude prevailed which supported the accession of seven out of the ten MAP members. This new major enlargement, the largest so far in the history of NATO, takes into consideration political, geostrategic and military criteria as well as public opinion. All these elements differentiate in these seven countries. However, there is a prominent effort to link the countries of Central Europe through Slovenia and Slovakia, to redress certain historical wrongs by allowing accession to the three Baltic countries, and to secure by Bulgarian and Rumanian membership the main axis of NATO for the21st century with regard to the East Mediterranean, the Middle East, the Gulf and further afield. Although the new candidates are by far better prepared than those in the first round of enlargement, it is obvious that Washington and Brussels have decided to give priority to political and diplomatic activities of NATO and to integrate the area of Euro-Atlantic community with a greater number of countries, so that it forms a sound community which is in alliance with the USA.
Keywords
NATO; September 11; European Union; United States of America
Hrčak ID:
286467
URI
Publication date:
30.9.2002.
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