Foreign relations of NATO

During negotiations to end of the occupation, which were ongoing at the same time as Germany's, the Soviet Union insisted on the reunified country adopting the model of Swiss neutrality.

[1] Shortly after West Germany's accession to NATO, the parties agreed to the Austrian State Treaty in May 1955, which was largely based on the Moscow Memorandum signed the previous month between Austria and the Soviet Union.

The Austrian military also participates in the United Nations peacekeeping operations and has deployments in several countries as of 2022[update], including Kosovo, Lebanon, and Bosnia and Herzegovina, where it has led the EUFOR mission there since 2009.

Current Chancellor Karl Nehammer, however, has rejected the idea of reopening Austria's neutrality and membership is not widely popular with the Austrian public.

[6][7][8] On May 8, 2022, a coalition of politicians, diplomats, artists and businesspeople wrote an open letter to the Austrian government asking them to review their commitment to neutrality.

[14] Nicos Anastasiades, who was elected President in 2013, stated that he intended to apply for membership in the PfP program soon after taking over.ref>Kambas, Michele; Babington, Deepa (2013-02-24).

In November 2024, Christodoulides reversed his previous stance and revealed a plan to deepen Cyprus' relations with NATO and eventually join as a full member.

[24][25] Public opinion in Ireland continues to favour a policy of neutrality in armed conflicts, and currently no major political party fully supports ascension into NATO.

However, according to a memorandum he prepared at the time he was discouraged from formally submitting a membership application by Deputy Secretary General of NATO James A. Roberts.

[44] However, Armenia is unlikely to join NATO as its policies often align it closer with Russia, and it remains a member of the Commonwealth of Independent States and the Collective Security Treaty Organization.

[46] On 3 September 2023, Armenian prime minister Nikol Pashinyan stated that it was a strategic mistake for Armenia to solely rely on Russia to guarantee its security.

[50] While President Ilham Aliyev has generally supported non-belligerency (though not neutrality due to the unresolved conflict with Armenia over Nagorno-Karabakh) since his rise to power in 2003, Azerbaijan has hosted NATO military exercises and high-profile meetings in 2009.

[59] Bosnia and Herzegovina has yet to fulfil the condition to launch an Annual National Programme under its MAP: the transfer of the registration of 63 military facilities from the local level to the central government.

[71] Kosovo submitted an application to join the PfP program in July 2012, though its lack of recognition by four NATO member states could impede its accession.

However, a future membership in the military alliance remained highly controversial, because among political parties and large sections of society there were still resentments due to NATO bombing of Yugoslavia in 1999.

Although current Serbian priorities do not include NATO membership, the Alliance has offered Serbia an invitation to enter the intensified dialogue programme whenever the country is ready.

[87] On 1 October 2008, Serbian Defence Minister Dragan Šutanovac signed the Information Exchange Agreement with the NATO, one of the prerequisites for fuller membership in the Partnership for Peace programme.

[99] Ukrainian politicians such as Yuriy Yekhanurov and Yulia Tymoshenko stated Ukraine would not join NATO as long as the public continued opposing the move.

[125] Australia is referred to by NATO as one of their "partners across the globe", agreeing to work on crisis and conflict management, post-conflict situations, reconstruction and facilitating humanitarian assistance and disaster relief.

In 2009, the Colombian Government asked to be part of the ISAF and work with the Spanish contingent in mine detection operations,[128] but this didn't materialize due to the internal conflict that Colombia faced.

In March 2011, Colombia voted in favor of United Nations Security Council Resolution 1973, thus officially allowing for NATO military intervention in the Libyan Civil War.

[130][131] On 4 June 2013, Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos announced that Colombia will be signing a Cooperation Agreement with NATO in hopes of eventually joining the military alliance.

Defense Minister Juan Carlos Pinzon stated his country merely wished to sign a cooperation deal with NATO,[134] and a NATO official noted that, "There is no immediate plan for establishing a formal partnership between the alliance and Colombia, but we are exploring the possibility of carrying out specific activities together...and we are currently developing a security of information agreement which would allow the exchange of classified information between the alliance and Colombia.

"[135] On the 10th of March 2022, in the context of the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine and amidst talks of new oil negotiations with Venezuela, US President Joe Biden announced Colombia had been designated Major Non-NATO Ally, in a bilateral meeting at the White House.

A Voice of Russia analysis quoted Robert Pshel, head of NATO's Information Office in Moscow as saying "I agree with Mr Daalder that many modern threats are global, and tackling them without emerging powers like India is hardly possible.

"[140] Boris Volkonsky of the Russian Strategic Research Institute was quoted as saying, "an ally like India would strengthen Washington's hand in South and Southwest Asia and other world areas.

[148] On June 29, 2022, the Prime Minister of Japan attended the NATO Summit for first time, as the trans-Atlantic alliance seeks to deepen ties with Asia-Pacific partners amid China's rise.

[151] On February 26, 2024, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Japan Yoko Kamikawa and NATO Supreme Allied Commander Europe (SACEUR) Christopher G. Cavoli agreed to strengthen cooperation between Tokyo and the alliance.

[157] Furthermore, South Korea has become a major armament exporter to those European NATO countries which wanted to increase their military capabilities quickly, as it was able to deliver large quantities of sophisticated complex weapon systems rapidly and cost-effectively after 2022.

More recently, Mongolia has been working together with NATO on Science for Peace and Security Programme, which focuses on cybersecurity and reducing the environmental impact of military sites.