NATO Multimedia
NATO through the years
Publication date
02 Apr 2024 16:11
Country
Various
Location
N/A
Type
EDITED
Format
16:9
Version
Master
Language
English
Event
NATO has kept our people safe and our nations free for 75 years. How did the Alliance stand the test of time, growing from 12 to 32 Allies? Watch the events that shaped its history since it was founded in 1949.
Synopsis
NATO is the world’s most successful political-military alliance. Over 75 years, it has managed to withstand challenges, expand its roles and mission and even grow significantly in size. But how has it persisted so long, and how has time and tribulation changed the organisation?
From the day it was founded in 1949 to the reinforcement of Eastern Europe in 2022, this documentary explores the moments that define the Organisation today, through the eyes and personal experiences of people who have witnessed these pivotal moments from the unique perspective of ‘insiders’, as former NATO staff.
During the Cold War, NATO successfully deterred the Soviet Union from aggression against Western Europe. In the 1990s, NATO helped to end ethnic conflicts in the Western Balkans. After the terrorist attacks against the United States on 9/11, it measured up to its purpose, invoking Article 5, the founding treaty’s collective defence clause, for the first time, and mobilising to defend Allies against further terrorist violence. And when Russia launched its brutal, full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, NATO rushed troops to Eastern Europe, assuring Allies of their safety while deterring further aggression from Russia.
In 2024, NATO is larger and more powerful – politically and militarily – than it was in 1949. Yet for all that has changed, it remains committed to its core goal of collective defence.
From the day it was founded in 1949 to the reinforcement of Eastern Europe in 2022, this documentary explores the moments that define the Organisation today, through the eyes and personal experiences of people who have witnessed these pivotal moments from the unique perspective of ‘insiders’, as former NATO staff.
During the Cold War, NATO successfully deterred the Soviet Union from aggression against Western Europe. In the 1990s, NATO helped to end ethnic conflicts in the Western Balkans. After the terrorist attacks against the United States on 9/11, it measured up to its purpose, invoking Article 5, the founding treaty’s collective defence clause, for the first time, and mobilising to defend Allies against further terrorist violence. And when Russia launched its brutal, full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, NATO rushed troops to Eastern Europe, assuring Allies of their safety while deterring further aggression from Russia.
In 2024, NATO is larger and more powerful – politically and militarily – than it was in 1949. Yet for all that has changed, it remains committed to its core goal of collective defence.
Transcript
TRANSCRIPT (AUDIO AND TEXT ON SCREEN)
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Oana Lungescu, NATO Spokesperson 2010 -2023
“I feel this is an existential moment so what we do, or don’t do, will change the face of the world for generations to come.”
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Jens Stoltenberg, NATO Secretary General (Addresses a press conference)
“Russia has attacked Ukraine. Peace on our continent has been shattered. We now have war in Europe on a scale we thought belonged to history.”
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH--
Colonel Richard Williams (RET), Deputy Director, NATO Defence Investment Division 1997-2011
“9/11 changed everything. Changed everything. And it proved that the existence of NATO needed to continue.”
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Oana Lungescu, NATO Spokesperson 2010 – 2023
“There is a responsibility to protect, and I think that showed, certainly in the Western Balkans, the importance of concerted international action.”
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Colonel Richard Williams (RET), Deputy Director, NATO Defence Investment Division 1997-2011
“When the wall came down, it was the most tangible proof of the division of Europe was going to finish. It was going to end.”
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Ambassador Csilla Würtz, Secretary of the Council and Director of NATO's Council Secretariat 2013-2018
“It’s really fantastic for everyone that these absolutely milestone changes occurred and we can now say that Europe is a free part of the world.”
--TEXT ON SCREEN—
NATO THROUGH THE YEARS
--TEXT ON SCREEN—
NATO ARCHIVES
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Christopher Bennett, Editor, NATO Review 2000-2006
“I think it’s important to look back at the past, to understand how we’ve got to where we are today to develop the most successful strategies moving forward.”
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Oana Lungescu, NATO Spokesperson 2010 – 2023
“If we stand united, Europe and North America, we can face every challenge as we have done over the past 75 years.”
--TEXT ON SCREEN—
1945
--TEXT ON SCREEN—
EUROPE IS IN A STATE OF POST-WAR
POLITICAL AND ECONOMIC CHAOS
THE SOVIET UNION
INSTALLS COMMUNIST
GOVERNMENTS IN EASTERN EUROPE
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Christopher Bennett, Editor, NATO Review 2000-2006
“The other half of the walnut, as President Truman described it, was the security side and the promise from the United States at that time that it would intervene in the event of a European war so we wouldn’t see a return to US isolationism as we had in the wake of World War One.”
--TEXT ON SCREEN—
1949
--TEXT ON SCREEN—
IN RESPONSE TO THE GROWING SOVIET THREAT,
LEADERS FROM NORTH AMERICA AND WESTERN EUROPE MEET IN WASHINGTON, D.C.
TO SIGN A TREATY STATING THAT AN ATTACK AGAINST ONE ALLY WOULD BE CONSIDERED AN ATTACK AGAINST ALL
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
President Harry S. Truman addresses the audience at the signing of the NATO Treaty
“The treaty we are signing here today is evidence of the path they will follow. It is the will of the people of the world for freedom and for peace.”
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Colonel Richard Williams (RET), Deputy Director, NATO Defence Investment Division 1997-2011
“It was extraordinarily important, the creation of the Alliance, and has been since then, because it's the only organisation that offers hope that peace can become a real possibility, not just regionally, but more far-reaching than that.”
--TEXT ON SCREEN—
1955
--TEXT ON SCREEN—
AS DIVISIONS BETWEEN EASTERN COMMUNIST COUNTRIES AND WESTERN DEMOCRACIES
IN EUROPE INTENSIFY
COUNTRIES IN THE EASTERN BLOC, LED BY THE SOVIET UNION,
ARE FORCED TO SIGN A SEPARATE TREATY KNOWN AS THE WARSAW PACT
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Oana Lungescu, NATO Spokesperson 2010 – 2023
“There were Soviet troops across Central and Eastern Europe, so they didn't really have a choice in joining this Alliance. It was nothing like NATO, which had been formed years before, with democracies choosing to join.”
--TEXT ON SCREEN--
1961
--TEXT ON SCREEN--
IN BERLIN AND BEYOND, A WALL IS BUILT TO PREVENT PEOPLE IN THE EAST FROM ESCAPING TO THE WEST
--SOUNDBITE (ENGLISH)—
Christopher Bennett, Editor, NATO Review 2000-2006
“I think what’s key here with the Berlin Wall and what Churchill dubbed the Iron Curtain, is actually how little contact there was for so many years between Eastern and Western Europe. And people growing up on both sides of the Iron Curtain had the threat of mutually assured destruction.”
--TEXT ON SCREEN—
THIS PERIOD OF POLITICAL, IDEOLOGICAL AND MILITARY TENSION BETWEEN THE COMMUNIST EAST AND DEMOCRATIC WEST BECAME KNOWN AS
THE COLD WAR
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
John F. Kennedy, President of the United States 1961-1963
“We will not prematurely or unnecessarily risk the costs of worldwide nuclear war, in which even the fruits of victory would be ashes in our mouth. But neither will we shrink from that risk. At any time, it must be faced.”
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Christopher Bennett, Editor, NATO Review 2000-2006
“People look at the Cold War, and they assume that nothing happened, that it was static. But it wasn't static. It was a continuous discussion of security issues and the best ways that Allies should address these security issues.”
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Oana Lungescu, NATO spokesperson 2010 – 2023
“Communist Romania was the most repressive country in the Soviet bloc. We had very little to eat. We had no heating. We had no hot water. I grew up listening to foreign radio stations like the BBC, Deutsche Welle, literally under the bed covers, for fear that my neighbours would report me to the dreaded Securitate, the secret police. So for me and for my family, NATO was actually always a beacon of light, of hope.”
--TEXT ON SCREEN—
1989
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Colonel Richard Williams (RET), Deputy Director, NATO Defence Investment Division 1997-2011
“I spent two-and-a-half years commanding a company on the inter-German border. In 1973, as a Captain, I took my company to see the Berlin Wall, and we went into East Berlin through Checkpoint Charlie. Those under Soviet control were very sombre. When the wall came down, it was a huge, huge event. Peace had a chance. Peace really had a chance.”
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Oana Lungescu, NATO spokesperson 2010 – 2023
“Those were dramatic and amazing moments. Just to see the happiness that freedom can bring to people.”
--TEXT ON SCREEN—
THE FALL OF THE BERLIN WALL IS THE CATALYST FOR THE COLLAPSE OF THE SOVIET UNION IN 1991
AND THE END OF THE COLD WAR
ONE BY ONE, NATIONS THAT WERE FORMERLY PART OF THE WARSAW PACT TURN THEIR BACKS ON COMMUNISM
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH--
Ambassador Csilla Würtz, Secretary of the Council and Director of NATO's Council Secretariat 2013-2018
“I was born in 1967. That was still the communist time in Hungary so when I got to university, that was the time when, in fact, our first free elections took place and all of a sudden there was quite a huge change afterwards. And the change that we did not imagine when I was, for example, six years old. Certainly my parents were not even thinking that this could happen. So we are very proud that we managed to get into NATO and into the European Union.”
--TEXT ON SCREEN—
1991
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Christopher Bennett, Editor, NATO Review 2000-2006
“I was a reporter in 1991 when the war broke out. So I started reporting from Yugoslavia when it was Yugoslavia.”
--TEXT ON SCREEN—
AFTER THE FALL OF COMMUNISM, YUGOSLAVIA STARTS TO BREAK APART LEADING TO A SERIES OF CONFLICTS MARKED BY ETHNIC VIOLENCE
THE FIGHTING IS PARTICULARLY FIERCE IN BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Christopher Bennett, Editor, NATO Review 2000-2006
“The NATO Secretary General in the 1990s, Manfred Wörner, was really committed to NATO doing what it could to intervene and to halt the conflict. And Manfred Wörner came literally from his deathbed to chair meetings of the North Atlantic Council, in which he was arguing for a more robust NATO intervention, which eventually came in 1995.”
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
MANFRED WÖRNER, NATO SECRETARY GENERAL 1988-1994
“NATO has been asked to act, and NATO will act. Our objective is to protect the safe areas against attacks so that the word ‘safe’ really means what it says. Safe.”
IN AUGUST 1995, TO END SERB-LED VIOLENCE
IN THE COUNTRY, UN PEACEKEEPERS REQUESTED
NATO AIRSTRIKES
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Christopher Bennett, Editor, NATO Review 2000-2006
“The NATO operation was the key to ending the Bosnian War in Bosnia and Herzegovina.”
--TEXT ON SCREEN—
1998
--TEXT ON SCREEN—
ETHNIC TENSIONS AGAIN INTENSIFY IN THE REGION
THE PRESIDENT OF THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF YUGOSLAVIA, SLOBODAN MILOŠEVIĆ, ORDERS A BRUTAL CRACKDOWN ON ETHNIC ALBANIANS IN KOSOVO
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Javier Solana, NATO Secretary General 1995-1999
“We must stop the violence and bring an end to the humanitarian catastrophe now taking place in Kosovo.”
--TEXT ON SCREEN—
NATO LAUNCHES AN AIR CAMPAIGN IN 1999 TO HALT THE HUMANITARIAN CRISIS UNFOLDING IN KOSOVO
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Oana Lungescu, NATO spokesperson 2010 – 2023
“That was a very clear response to avoid ethnic cleansing in Kosovo. So there is a responsibility to protect. And I think that showed, certainly in the Western Balkans, the importance of concerted international action at an early stage.”
--TEXT ON SCREEN—
NATO’S INTERVENTION ENDED THE CONFLICT
TODAY, NATO’S KOSOVO FORCE, KFOR, WHICH WAS ESTABLISHED IN JUNE 1999 UNDER MANDATE OF A UNITED NATIONS SECURITY COUNCIL RESOLUTION
CONTINUES TO PROVIDE SECURITY FOR ALL THE PEOPLE IN KOSOVO
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Christopher Bennett, Editor, NATO Review 2000-2006
“NATO has provided for the past 25 years an important presence which contributes to the conditions for a peace process to take place, firstly in Bosnia and Herzegovina, but then subsequently also in Kosovo after a far greater NATO intervention in 1999.”
--TEXT ON SCREEN—
1999
--TEXT ON SCREEN—
SEVERAL FORMER WARSAW PACT COUNTRIES
JOIN THE ALLIANCE
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Oana Lungescu, NATO spokesperson 2010 – 2023
“We had the accession of the first three former communist countries, Poland, the Czech Republic and Hungary, joining in 1999 and then in 2004 seven more countries joined in what was known as the Big Bang accession and being there and watching the flags of Romania, but all the other countries that joined at the same time, was probably one of the most emotional moments in my life. These were countries that were part of the European, the Euro-Atlantic family, that had been kept apart for so many decades, who are now coming home.
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Christopher Bennett, Editor, NATO Review 2000-2006
“The countries who wished to join NATO after the Cold War were those countries who believed they had had their sovereignty taken away from them. And they would look to NATO as a guarantor to protect them so that they would maintain that sovereignty in the future.”
--TEXT ON SCREEN—
2001
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Ambassador Csilla Würtz, Secretary of the Council and Director of NATO's Council Secretariat 2013-2018
“I was here in Headquarters, and all of a sudden, we were called to the office of the Permanent Representative because he was looking at the television and seeing the Twin Towers going down. It was a moment where we could not believe our eyes.”
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Oana Lungescu, NATO spokesperson 2010 – 2023
“I came to the old NATO Headquarters and I remember looking up and there was a plane, because, of course, we're very close to Brussels Airport. And I thought, yeah, you know, this can also be a target, but it's also a source of strength.”
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH--
The Rt. Hon. Lord Robertson of Port Ellen, NATO Secretary General 1999-2003
“NATO solidarity remains the essence of our Alliance. Our message to the people of the United States is that we are with you. Our message to those who perpetrated these unspeakable crimes is equally clear. You will not get away with it.”
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Christopher Bennett, Editor, NATO Review 2000-2006
“There was a remarkable galvanisation of support behind the United States. The Allies stood up and stood around the United States at that particular time, and that was very significant.”
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Colonel Richard Williams (RET), Deputy Director, NATO Defence Investment Division 1997-2011
“That was really a huge wake-up call. That business as usual obviously wasn't going to continue.”
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH--
The Rt. Hon. Lord Robertson of Port Ellen, NATO Secretary General 1999-2003
“If it is determined that this attack was directed from abroad against the United States, it shall be regarded as an action covered by Article 5 of the Washington Treaty.”
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Colonel Richard Williams (RET), Deputy Director, NATO Defence Investment Division 1997-2011
“I was elated, like other Americans, that the Alliance voted unanimously to apply Article 5. That was very meaningful to us.”
--TEXT ON SCREEN—
IN OCTOBER 2001, A US-LED COALITION LAUNCHES MILITARY OPERATIONS IN AFGHANISTAN
FOR 20 YEARS, NATO ALLIED AND PARTNER FORCES ASSIST THE AFGHAN GOVERNMENT TO BUILD ITS SECURITY FORCES AND PROVIDE SECURITY IN THE COUNTRY
IN AUGUST 2021, NATO FORCES LEAVE AFGHANISTAN AFTER THE AFGHAN GOVERNMENT IS OVERTHROWN
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Oana Lungescu, NATO spokesperson 2010 – 2023
“There has been no other terrorist attack on our nations from Afghanistan. That security objective was achieved. The mission morphed into something closer to democracy building, and I think we were not able to achieve that goal. And I think we've also learned a lot from that mission.”
--TEXT ON SCREEN—
2011
--TEXT ON SCREEN—
PRO-DEMOCRACY UPRISINGS SWEEP ACROSS NORTH AFRICA AND THE MIDDLE EAST, IN WHAT BECOMES KNOWN AS THE ARAB SPRING
IN LIBYA, MUAMMAR GADDAFI’S REGIME RESPONDS TO PROTESTS WITH MILITARY CRACKDOWNS, AIRSTRIKES ON CIVILIAN AREAS AND WIDESPREAD HUMAN RIGHTS ABUSES
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Anders Fogh Rasmussen, NATO Secretary General 2009-2014
“NATO Allies stand behind the legitimate aspirations of the Libyan people for freedom, democracy and human rights.”
--TEXT ON SCREEN—
IN MARCH 2011, AUTHORISED BY THE UN SECURITY COUNCIL, NATO COMMENCES AIRSTRIKES AGAINST GADDAFI’S FORCES
NATO’S INVOLVEMENT IN LIBYA ENDS IN OCTOBER 2011 FOLLOWING THE COLLAPSE OF THE GADDAFI REGIME
--TEXT ON SCREEN—
2014
--TEXT ON SCREEN—
AMID POLITICAL UNREST IN UKRAINE
RUSSIAN TROOPS WITHOUT INSIGNIAS OCCUPY KEY LOCATIONS ACROSS THE UKRAINIAN PENINSULA OF CRIMEA
--SOUNDBITE (ENGLISH)—
Oana Lungescu, NATO Spokesperson 2010 – 2023
“I remember being at NATO Headquarters practically all the time. It was very intense discussions. How do we know that those “little green men” in uniforms without insignia, are actually Russian soldiers? But for the first time, we started using satellite imagery much more deliberately. We were exposing Russia's plans, Russia's intentions and Russia's actions on the ground.”
--TEXT ON SCREEN—
IN MARCH 2014 RUSSIA ILLEGALLY ANNEXES CRIMEA
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Barack Obama, President of the United States 2009-2017
“If the Russian leadership stays on its current course, together we will ensure that this isolation deepens. Sanctions will expand and the toll on Russia's economy as well as its standing in the world, will only increase.”
--TEXT ON SCREEN—
FOLLOWING RUSSIA’S AGGRESSIVE ACTIONS, NATO DEPLOYS COMBAT TROOPS TO THE EAST OF THE ALLIANCE FOR THE FIRST TIME
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Oana Lungescu, NATO spokesperson 2010 – 2023
“It was a clear signal that we could defend all Allies against Russian aggression.”
--TEXT ON SCREEN—
2022
--TEXT ON SCREEN—
RUSSIA CONDUCTS A BRUTAL AND UNPROVOKED FULL-SCALE INVASION OF UKRAINE
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Jens Stoltenberg, NATO Secretary General
“We are at a grave moment for the security of Europe. Russia is attempting to turn back the clock by force, to re-establish a sphere of influence and to undermine the global rules that have kept Europe safe for decades.”
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Ambassador Csilla Würtz, Secretary of the Council and Director of NATO's Council Secretariat 2013-2018
“When somebody from here asked me, “Will Russia attack Ukraine?”, my answer was “No, that's not possible”. I mean, they cannot be this short-sighted, for sure not, this is not going to happen. And I could not believe that in the 21st century there would be a war like that.”
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Oana Lungescu, NATO spokesperson 2010 – 2023
“We knew what Russia intended to do. We could see them, amassing their troops. So it was clear that an invasion was imminent. NATO was prepared to defend all Allies to send a very clear message that we would defend every Ally and that we would continue to support Ukraine.”
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Christopher Bennett, Editor, NATO Review 2000-2006
“Allies which were once part of the Soviet Union and the Allies which were once Warsaw Pact countries, are understandably terrified at the prospect of a resurgent Russia. And this was obviously the reason that they were so eager to join NATO for protection against the kind of existential threat that Ukraine is now facing.”
--TEXT ON SCREEN—
WITH RUSSIA’S INVASION OF UKRAINE, FINLAND AND SWEDEN CHOOSE TO ABANDON THEIR NEUTRAL STATUS AND JOIN NATO
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Oana Lungescu, NATO spokesperson 2010 – 2023
“To see the flag of Finland and Sweden raised outside NATO Headquarters was an amazing moment. It showed that countries have the right to choose, that NATO's door remains open, and that Putin has achieved a strategic failure because if he wanted to have less NATO, he has more NATO.”
--TEXT IN SCREEN—
OVER THE PAST 75 YEARS
COUNTLESS INDIVIDUALS HAVE WORKED TIRELESSLY
IN A CIVILIAN OR MILITARY CAPACITY
TO ENSURE THE SECURITY AND FREEDOM OF ONE BILLION PEOPLE
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Oana Lungescu, NATO spokesperson 2010 – 2023
“For me, joining NATO was not a career step, it was a mission. And even if I'm retired now from NATO, it remains a cornerstone of who I am.”
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Ambassador Csilla Würtz, Secretary of the Council and Director of NATO's Council Secretariat 2013-2018
“Once you become a member of this Alliance, you immediately feel the gravitas of that. And, you know, that's what NATO is about. So if one Ally is threatened, then everybody is making sure we are helping that Ally. And one for all, all for one.”
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Christopher Bennett, Editor, NATO Review 2000-2006
“Above all, it is a forum for debating security issues and building consensus among Allies.”
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Colonel Richard Williams (RET), Deputy Director, NATO Defence Investment Division 1997-2011
“This Alliance is strong. This Alliance consists of countries that have worked together for decades. That's what NATO is, more than anything.”
--DISCLAIMER—
--TEXT ON SCREEN--
This video contains Thomson Reuters copyrighted library material licensed by NATO, which cannot be used as part of a new production without consent of the copyright holder. Please contact Thomson Reuters to clear this material.
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Oana Lungescu, NATO Spokesperson 2010 -2023
“I feel this is an existential moment so what we do, or don’t do, will change the face of the world for generations to come.”
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Jens Stoltenberg, NATO Secretary General (Addresses a press conference)
“Russia has attacked Ukraine. Peace on our continent has been shattered. We now have war in Europe on a scale we thought belonged to history.”
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH--
Colonel Richard Williams (RET), Deputy Director, NATO Defence Investment Division 1997-2011
“9/11 changed everything. Changed everything. And it proved that the existence of NATO needed to continue.”
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Oana Lungescu, NATO Spokesperson 2010 – 2023
“There is a responsibility to protect, and I think that showed, certainly in the Western Balkans, the importance of concerted international action.”
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Colonel Richard Williams (RET), Deputy Director, NATO Defence Investment Division 1997-2011
“When the wall came down, it was the most tangible proof of the division of Europe was going to finish. It was going to end.”
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Ambassador Csilla Würtz, Secretary of the Council and Director of NATO's Council Secretariat 2013-2018
“It’s really fantastic for everyone that these absolutely milestone changes occurred and we can now say that Europe is a free part of the world.”
--TEXT ON SCREEN—
NATO THROUGH THE YEARS
--TEXT ON SCREEN—
NATO ARCHIVES
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Christopher Bennett, Editor, NATO Review 2000-2006
“I think it’s important to look back at the past, to understand how we’ve got to where we are today to develop the most successful strategies moving forward.”
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Oana Lungescu, NATO Spokesperson 2010 – 2023
“If we stand united, Europe and North America, we can face every challenge as we have done over the past 75 years.”
--TEXT ON SCREEN—
1945
--TEXT ON SCREEN—
EUROPE IS IN A STATE OF POST-WAR
POLITICAL AND ECONOMIC CHAOS
THE SOVIET UNION
INSTALLS COMMUNIST
GOVERNMENTS IN EASTERN EUROPE
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Christopher Bennett, Editor, NATO Review 2000-2006
“The other half of the walnut, as President Truman described it, was the security side and the promise from the United States at that time that it would intervene in the event of a European war so we wouldn’t see a return to US isolationism as we had in the wake of World War One.”
--TEXT ON SCREEN—
1949
--TEXT ON SCREEN—
IN RESPONSE TO THE GROWING SOVIET THREAT,
LEADERS FROM NORTH AMERICA AND WESTERN EUROPE MEET IN WASHINGTON, D.C.
TO SIGN A TREATY STATING THAT AN ATTACK AGAINST ONE ALLY WOULD BE CONSIDERED AN ATTACK AGAINST ALL
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
President Harry S. Truman addresses the audience at the signing of the NATO Treaty
“The treaty we are signing here today is evidence of the path they will follow. It is the will of the people of the world for freedom and for peace.”
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Colonel Richard Williams (RET), Deputy Director, NATO Defence Investment Division 1997-2011
“It was extraordinarily important, the creation of the Alliance, and has been since then, because it's the only organisation that offers hope that peace can become a real possibility, not just regionally, but more far-reaching than that.”
--TEXT ON SCREEN—
1955
--TEXT ON SCREEN—
AS DIVISIONS BETWEEN EASTERN COMMUNIST COUNTRIES AND WESTERN DEMOCRACIES
IN EUROPE INTENSIFY
COUNTRIES IN THE EASTERN BLOC, LED BY THE SOVIET UNION,
ARE FORCED TO SIGN A SEPARATE TREATY KNOWN AS THE WARSAW PACT
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Oana Lungescu, NATO Spokesperson 2010 – 2023
“There were Soviet troops across Central and Eastern Europe, so they didn't really have a choice in joining this Alliance. It was nothing like NATO, which had been formed years before, with democracies choosing to join.”
--TEXT ON SCREEN--
1961
--TEXT ON SCREEN--
IN BERLIN AND BEYOND, A WALL IS BUILT TO PREVENT PEOPLE IN THE EAST FROM ESCAPING TO THE WEST
--SOUNDBITE (ENGLISH)—
Christopher Bennett, Editor, NATO Review 2000-2006
“I think what’s key here with the Berlin Wall and what Churchill dubbed the Iron Curtain, is actually how little contact there was for so many years between Eastern and Western Europe. And people growing up on both sides of the Iron Curtain had the threat of mutually assured destruction.”
--TEXT ON SCREEN—
THIS PERIOD OF POLITICAL, IDEOLOGICAL AND MILITARY TENSION BETWEEN THE COMMUNIST EAST AND DEMOCRATIC WEST BECAME KNOWN AS
THE COLD WAR
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
John F. Kennedy, President of the United States 1961-1963
“We will not prematurely or unnecessarily risk the costs of worldwide nuclear war, in which even the fruits of victory would be ashes in our mouth. But neither will we shrink from that risk. At any time, it must be faced.”
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Christopher Bennett, Editor, NATO Review 2000-2006
“People look at the Cold War, and they assume that nothing happened, that it was static. But it wasn't static. It was a continuous discussion of security issues and the best ways that Allies should address these security issues.”
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Oana Lungescu, NATO spokesperson 2010 – 2023
“Communist Romania was the most repressive country in the Soviet bloc. We had very little to eat. We had no heating. We had no hot water. I grew up listening to foreign radio stations like the BBC, Deutsche Welle, literally under the bed covers, for fear that my neighbours would report me to the dreaded Securitate, the secret police. So for me and for my family, NATO was actually always a beacon of light, of hope.”
--TEXT ON SCREEN—
1989
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Colonel Richard Williams (RET), Deputy Director, NATO Defence Investment Division 1997-2011
“I spent two-and-a-half years commanding a company on the inter-German border. In 1973, as a Captain, I took my company to see the Berlin Wall, and we went into East Berlin through Checkpoint Charlie. Those under Soviet control were very sombre. When the wall came down, it was a huge, huge event. Peace had a chance. Peace really had a chance.”
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Oana Lungescu, NATO spokesperson 2010 – 2023
“Those were dramatic and amazing moments. Just to see the happiness that freedom can bring to people.”
--TEXT ON SCREEN—
THE FALL OF THE BERLIN WALL IS THE CATALYST FOR THE COLLAPSE OF THE SOVIET UNION IN 1991
AND THE END OF THE COLD WAR
ONE BY ONE, NATIONS THAT WERE FORMERLY PART OF THE WARSAW PACT TURN THEIR BACKS ON COMMUNISM
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH--
Ambassador Csilla Würtz, Secretary of the Council and Director of NATO's Council Secretariat 2013-2018
“I was born in 1967. That was still the communist time in Hungary so when I got to university, that was the time when, in fact, our first free elections took place and all of a sudden there was quite a huge change afterwards. And the change that we did not imagine when I was, for example, six years old. Certainly my parents were not even thinking that this could happen. So we are very proud that we managed to get into NATO and into the European Union.”
--TEXT ON SCREEN—
1991
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Christopher Bennett, Editor, NATO Review 2000-2006
“I was a reporter in 1991 when the war broke out. So I started reporting from Yugoslavia when it was Yugoslavia.”
--TEXT ON SCREEN—
AFTER THE FALL OF COMMUNISM, YUGOSLAVIA STARTS TO BREAK APART LEADING TO A SERIES OF CONFLICTS MARKED BY ETHNIC VIOLENCE
THE FIGHTING IS PARTICULARLY FIERCE IN BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Christopher Bennett, Editor, NATO Review 2000-2006
“The NATO Secretary General in the 1990s, Manfred Wörner, was really committed to NATO doing what it could to intervene and to halt the conflict. And Manfred Wörner came literally from his deathbed to chair meetings of the North Atlantic Council, in which he was arguing for a more robust NATO intervention, which eventually came in 1995.”
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
MANFRED WÖRNER, NATO SECRETARY GENERAL 1988-1994
“NATO has been asked to act, and NATO will act. Our objective is to protect the safe areas against attacks so that the word ‘safe’ really means what it says. Safe.”
IN AUGUST 1995, TO END SERB-LED VIOLENCE
IN THE COUNTRY, UN PEACEKEEPERS REQUESTED
NATO AIRSTRIKES
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Christopher Bennett, Editor, NATO Review 2000-2006
“The NATO operation was the key to ending the Bosnian War in Bosnia and Herzegovina.”
--TEXT ON SCREEN—
1998
--TEXT ON SCREEN—
ETHNIC TENSIONS AGAIN INTENSIFY IN THE REGION
THE PRESIDENT OF THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF YUGOSLAVIA, SLOBODAN MILOŠEVIĆ, ORDERS A BRUTAL CRACKDOWN ON ETHNIC ALBANIANS IN KOSOVO
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Javier Solana, NATO Secretary General 1995-1999
“We must stop the violence and bring an end to the humanitarian catastrophe now taking place in Kosovo.”
--TEXT ON SCREEN—
NATO LAUNCHES AN AIR CAMPAIGN IN 1999 TO HALT THE HUMANITARIAN CRISIS UNFOLDING IN KOSOVO
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Oana Lungescu, NATO spokesperson 2010 – 2023
“That was a very clear response to avoid ethnic cleansing in Kosovo. So there is a responsibility to protect. And I think that showed, certainly in the Western Balkans, the importance of concerted international action at an early stage.”
--TEXT ON SCREEN—
NATO’S INTERVENTION ENDED THE CONFLICT
TODAY, NATO’S KOSOVO FORCE, KFOR, WHICH WAS ESTABLISHED IN JUNE 1999 UNDER MANDATE OF A UNITED NATIONS SECURITY COUNCIL RESOLUTION
CONTINUES TO PROVIDE SECURITY FOR ALL THE PEOPLE IN KOSOVO
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Christopher Bennett, Editor, NATO Review 2000-2006
“NATO has provided for the past 25 years an important presence which contributes to the conditions for a peace process to take place, firstly in Bosnia and Herzegovina, but then subsequently also in Kosovo after a far greater NATO intervention in 1999.”
--TEXT ON SCREEN—
1999
--TEXT ON SCREEN—
SEVERAL FORMER WARSAW PACT COUNTRIES
JOIN THE ALLIANCE
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Oana Lungescu, NATO spokesperson 2010 – 2023
“We had the accession of the first three former communist countries, Poland, the Czech Republic and Hungary, joining in 1999 and then in 2004 seven more countries joined in what was known as the Big Bang accession and being there and watching the flags of Romania, but all the other countries that joined at the same time, was probably one of the most emotional moments in my life. These were countries that were part of the European, the Euro-Atlantic family, that had been kept apart for so many decades, who are now coming home.
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Christopher Bennett, Editor, NATO Review 2000-2006
“The countries who wished to join NATO after the Cold War were those countries who believed they had had their sovereignty taken away from them. And they would look to NATO as a guarantor to protect them so that they would maintain that sovereignty in the future.”
--TEXT ON SCREEN—
2001
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Ambassador Csilla Würtz, Secretary of the Council and Director of NATO's Council Secretariat 2013-2018
“I was here in Headquarters, and all of a sudden, we were called to the office of the Permanent Representative because he was looking at the television and seeing the Twin Towers going down. It was a moment where we could not believe our eyes.”
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Oana Lungescu, NATO spokesperson 2010 – 2023
“I came to the old NATO Headquarters and I remember looking up and there was a plane, because, of course, we're very close to Brussels Airport. And I thought, yeah, you know, this can also be a target, but it's also a source of strength.”
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH--
The Rt. Hon. Lord Robertson of Port Ellen, NATO Secretary General 1999-2003
“NATO solidarity remains the essence of our Alliance. Our message to the people of the United States is that we are with you. Our message to those who perpetrated these unspeakable crimes is equally clear. You will not get away with it.”
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Christopher Bennett, Editor, NATO Review 2000-2006
“There was a remarkable galvanisation of support behind the United States. The Allies stood up and stood around the United States at that particular time, and that was very significant.”
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Colonel Richard Williams (RET), Deputy Director, NATO Defence Investment Division 1997-2011
“That was really a huge wake-up call. That business as usual obviously wasn't going to continue.”
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH--
The Rt. Hon. Lord Robertson of Port Ellen, NATO Secretary General 1999-2003
“If it is determined that this attack was directed from abroad against the United States, it shall be regarded as an action covered by Article 5 of the Washington Treaty.”
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Colonel Richard Williams (RET), Deputy Director, NATO Defence Investment Division 1997-2011
“I was elated, like other Americans, that the Alliance voted unanimously to apply Article 5. That was very meaningful to us.”
--TEXT ON SCREEN—
IN OCTOBER 2001, A US-LED COALITION LAUNCHES MILITARY OPERATIONS IN AFGHANISTAN
FOR 20 YEARS, NATO ALLIED AND PARTNER FORCES ASSIST THE AFGHAN GOVERNMENT TO BUILD ITS SECURITY FORCES AND PROVIDE SECURITY IN THE COUNTRY
IN AUGUST 2021, NATO FORCES LEAVE AFGHANISTAN AFTER THE AFGHAN GOVERNMENT IS OVERTHROWN
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Oana Lungescu, NATO spokesperson 2010 – 2023
“There has been no other terrorist attack on our nations from Afghanistan. That security objective was achieved. The mission morphed into something closer to democracy building, and I think we were not able to achieve that goal. And I think we've also learned a lot from that mission.”
--TEXT ON SCREEN—
2011
--TEXT ON SCREEN—
PRO-DEMOCRACY UPRISINGS SWEEP ACROSS NORTH AFRICA AND THE MIDDLE EAST, IN WHAT BECOMES KNOWN AS THE ARAB SPRING
IN LIBYA, MUAMMAR GADDAFI’S REGIME RESPONDS TO PROTESTS WITH MILITARY CRACKDOWNS, AIRSTRIKES ON CIVILIAN AREAS AND WIDESPREAD HUMAN RIGHTS ABUSES
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Anders Fogh Rasmussen, NATO Secretary General 2009-2014
“NATO Allies stand behind the legitimate aspirations of the Libyan people for freedom, democracy and human rights.”
--TEXT ON SCREEN—
IN MARCH 2011, AUTHORISED BY THE UN SECURITY COUNCIL, NATO COMMENCES AIRSTRIKES AGAINST GADDAFI’S FORCES
NATO’S INVOLVEMENT IN LIBYA ENDS IN OCTOBER 2011 FOLLOWING THE COLLAPSE OF THE GADDAFI REGIME
--TEXT ON SCREEN—
2014
--TEXT ON SCREEN—
AMID POLITICAL UNREST IN UKRAINE
RUSSIAN TROOPS WITHOUT INSIGNIAS OCCUPY KEY LOCATIONS ACROSS THE UKRAINIAN PENINSULA OF CRIMEA
--SOUNDBITE (ENGLISH)—
Oana Lungescu, NATO Spokesperson 2010 – 2023
“I remember being at NATO Headquarters practically all the time. It was very intense discussions. How do we know that those “little green men” in uniforms without insignia, are actually Russian soldiers? But for the first time, we started using satellite imagery much more deliberately. We were exposing Russia's plans, Russia's intentions and Russia's actions on the ground.”
--TEXT ON SCREEN—
IN MARCH 2014 RUSSIA ILLEGALLY ANNEXES CRIMEA
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Barack Obama, President of the United States 2009-2017
“If the Russian leadership stays on its current course, together we will ensure that this isolation deepens. Sanctions will expand and the toll on Russia's economy as well as its standing in the world, will only increase.”
--TEXT ON SCREEN—
FOLLOWING RUSSIA’S AGGRESSIVE ACTIONS, NATO DEPLOYS COMBAT TROOPS TO THE EAST OF THE ALLIANCE FOR THE FIRST TIME
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Oana Lungescu, NATO spokesperson 2010 – 2023
“It was a clear signal that we could defend all Allies against Russian aggression.”
--TEXT ON SCREEN—
2022
--TEXT ON SCREEN—
RUSSIA CONDUCTS A BRUTAL AND UNPROVOKED FULL-SCALE INVASION OF UKRAINE
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Jens Stoltenberg, NATO Secretary General
“We are at a grave moment for the security of Europe. Russia is attempting to turn back the clock by force, to re-establish a sphere of influence and to undermine the global rules that have kept Europe safe for decades.”
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Ambassador Csilla Würtz, Secretary of the Council and Director of NATO's Council Secretariat 2013-2018
“When somebody from here asked me, “Will Russia attack Ukraine?”, my answer was “No, that's not possible”. I mean, they cannot be this short-sighted, for sure not, this is not going to happen. And I could not believe that in the 21st century there would be a war like that.”
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Oana Lungescu, NATO spokesperson 2010 – 2023
“We knew what Russia intended to do. We could see them, amassing their troops. So it was clear that an invasion was imminent. NATO was prepared to defend all Allies to send a very clear message that we would defend every Ally and that we would continue to support Ukraine.”
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Christopher Bennett, Editor, NATO Review 2000-2006
“Allies which were once part of the Soviet Union and the Allies which were once Warsaw Pact countries, are understandably terrified at the prospect of a resurgent Russia. And this was obviously the reason that they were so eager to join NATO for protection against the kind of existential threat that Ukraine is now facing.”
--TEXT ON SCREEN—
WITH RUSSIA’S INVASION OF UKRAINE, FINLAND AND SWEDEN CHOOSE TO ABANDON THEIR NEUTRAL STATUS AND JOIN NATO
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Oana Lungescu, NATO spokesperson 2010 – 2023
“To see the flag of Finland and Sweden raised outside NATO Headquarters was an amazing moment. It showed that countries have the right to choose, that NATO's door remains open, and that Putin has achieved a strategic failure because if he wanted to have less NATO, he has more NATO.”
--TEXT IN SCREEN—
OVER THE PAST 75 YEARS
COUNTLESS INDIVIDUALS HAVE WORKED TIRELESSLY
IN A CIVILIAN OR MILITARY CAPACITY
TO ENSURE THE SECURITY AND FREEDOM OF ONE BILLION PEOPLE
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Oana Lungescu, NATO spokesperson 2010 – 2023
“For me, joining NATO was not a career step, it was a mission. And even if I'm retired now from NATO, it remains a cornerstone of who I am.”
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Ambassador Csilla Würtz, Secretary of the Council and Director of NATO's Council Secretariat 2013-2018
“Once you become a member of this Alliance, you immediately feel the gravitas of that. And, you know, that's what NATO is about. So if one Ally is threatened, then everybody is making sure we are helping that Ally. And one for all, all for one.”
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Christopher Bennett, Editor, NATO Review 2000-2006
“Above all, it is a forum for debating security issues and building consensus among Allies.”
--SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH—
Colonel Richard Williams (RET), Deputy Director, NATO Defence Investment Division 1997-2011
“This Alliance is strong. This Alliance consists of countries that have worked together for decades. That's what NATO is, more than anything.”
--DISCLAIMER—
--TEXT ON SCREEN--
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Reference
NATO932229
ID
2227