What is Nato and what does Article 5 mean?
First North Atlantic Treaty Organization action in Ukraine-Russia war since it began in 2022
Nato has been drawn into the Russia-Ukraine war for the first time with jets being scrambled after a “huge number” of drones entered Polish airspace.
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Poland’s prime minister Donald Tusk has said the country is “closer to war” than at any time since the Second World War after the “act of aggression" by Vladimir Putin.
The country was forced to defend itself with Nato jets, making this the first time the alliance has become involved in the conflict since the Ukraine war began in February 2022.
Nineteen Russian drone incursions were made into Poland’s airspace overnight, with debris from one shot-down drone crashing into someone’s home.
Eight million Poles were ordered to stay at home, although there were not reported to be any injuries.
Mr Tusk tweeted: “Last night the Polish airspace was violated by a huge number of Russian drones. Those drones that posed a direct threat were shot down.
“I am in constant communication with the Secretary General of Nato and our allies.”
But what is Nato and what does this mean?
What is Nato?
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (Nato) was formed in 1949 by 12 nations that had mutual interests in protecting each other from the perceived threat of the Soviet Union.
There is not a Nato army, but the armed forces of the members’ militaries can come together in times of conflict and carry out military exercises.
The UK was a founding member of Nato, alongside the US, Canada, Denmark, France, Iceland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, and Belgium.
The headquarters of Nato are in the Belgian capital, Brussels.
Which countries are Nato members?
There are 32 countries in the alliance as of 2024.
- UK, US, Canada, Denmark, France, Iceland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, and Belgium (All joined in 1949),
- Greece and Turkey (1952),
- Germany (1955, as West Germany),
- Spain (1982),
- Czech Republic, Hungary, and Poland (1999),
- Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Slovakia, and Slovenia (2004),
- Albania and Croatia (2009),
- Montenegro (2017),
- North Macedonia (2020),
- Finland (2023),
- Sweden (2024)
Ukraine is not a Nato member but has indicated a willingness to join, as has Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Georgia.
Ireland is not a member.
What are Nato Articles 4 and 5?
Article 4 states that any member can bring an issue of concern to the North Atlantic Council, and this has been done on seven occasions since the inception of Nato.
Article 5 is the best-known clause and states that an armed attack against one or more Nato members is an attack on all of them.
Nato would not be expected to respond to an attack on a country’s land that is outside of the region, such as Britain defending the Falkland Islands in 1982.
Article 5 has only been invoked once, in 2001, after the 9/11 terrorist attacks.
There is a practical element to how this could be dealt with on a case-by-case basis.
A hypothetical, and extremely unlikely, San Marino-led invasion of Italy would not warrant a response from all of the member states in the same way a Russian attack on Poland might.
