The North Atlantic Treaty and the UN Charter
The acknowledgement of a direct relationship between the North Atlantic Treaty and the Charter of the United Nations is a fundamental principle of the Alliance.
Official texts
- 4 Apr. 1949
The North Atlantic Treaty
Opinions
- NATO Review - Summer 2006
Invoking Article 5 - NATO Review - Summer 2006
Negotiating Article 5
Eng.
/ Fr.
The Charter, signed in San Francisco on 26 June 1945 by fifty nations, provides the legal basis for the creation of NATO and establishes the overall responsibility of the UN Security Council for international peace and security.
These two fundamental principles are enshrined in NATO’s North Atlantic Treaty signed in Washington on 4 April 1949.
What does this mean in practice?
The preamble to the Washington Treaty makes it clear that the UN Charter is the framework within which the Alliance operates. In its opening phrases, the signatories of the Treaty reaffirm their faith in the purposes and principles of the Charter.
In Article 1 they also undertake to settle international disputes by peaceful means and to refrain from the threat or use of force in any manner inconsistent with the purposes of the UN Charter.
Article 5 of the Treaty makes explicit reference to Article 51 of the UN Charter in asserting the right of the Allies to take, individually or collectively, such action as they deem necessary for their self-defence. This includes the use of armed force. Moreover, it commits the member countries to terminating any such armed attack and all measures taken as a result, when the UN Security Council has itself taken the measures necessary to restore and maintain international peace and security.
Further reference to the UN Charter can be found in Article 7 of the North Atlantic Treaty, which states that the Treaty does not affect and shall not be interpreted as affecting in any way the rights and obligations of Allies under the Charter and reaffirms the primary responsibility of the UN Security Council for the maintenance of international peace and security.
And finally, in Article 12, a clause was included in the Treaty providing for it to be reviewed after ten years, if any of the Parties to it so requested. It stipulated that the review would take place in the light of new developments affecting peace and security in the North Atlantic area, including the development of universal and regional arrangements under the UN Charter.
