Article 9 creates a council to oversee implementation of the treaty. Article 10 describes admission procedures for other nations. Article 11 states the ratification procedure. Article 12 allows for reconsideration of the treaty. Article 13 outlines withdrawal procedures. Article 14 calls for the deposition of the official copies of the treaty in the US Archives.

Structure

The highest authority within NATO is the North Atlantic Council, composed of permanent delegates from all members, headed by a secretary-general. It is responsible for general policy, budgetary outlines, and administrative actions. Subordinate to the council are the Secretariat, various temporary committees, and the Military Committee. The secretary-general runs the Secretariat, which handles all the non-military functions of the alliance. The temporary committees deal with specific assignments of the council. The Military Committee consists of the chiefs of staff of the various armed forces; it meets twice a year. Between such meetings the Military Committee, in permanent session with representatives of the members, defines military policies. Below the Military Committee are the various geographical commands: Allied Command Europe, Allied Command Atlantic, Allied Command Channel, and the Regional Planning Group (for North America). These commands are in charge of deploying armed forces in their areas.

History

Until 1950 NATO consisted primarily of a pledge by the United States to aid its members under the terms of Article 5 of the treaty. There was no effective machinery, however, for implementation of this pledge. The outbreak of the Korean War in June 1950 convinced the allies that the Soviets might act against a divided Germany. The result was not only the creation of a military command system, but also the expansion of the organization. In 1952 Greece and Turkey joined the alliance, and in 1955 West Germany was accepted under a complicated arrangement whereby Germany would not be allowed to manufacture nuclear, biological, or chemical weapons. In its first decade NATO was mainly a military organization dominated by US power, which provided a security blanket for the revival of Europe's economy and polity.

Soviet achievement of parity in nuclear weaponry with the West resulted in concern among Europeans that the United States would not honour its pledge.