NATO - Summary on a Map
NATO - Summary on a Map
The history of NATO on maps, from the end of World War II, until the invasion of Ukraine by Russia.
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Support the channel on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/geohistory
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English translation \u0026 voiceover: Matthew Bates https://www.epicvoiceover.com/
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Original French version: • L’OTAN - Résumé sur cartes
Russian version: • НАТО - история на карте
Arabic version: • حلف الناتو
Spanish version: • Historia de la OTAN - Síntesis en mapas
Portuguese version (Brazil): • OTAN: A História da Aliança Militar
Japanese version: • NATOの歴史
German version: • Die Geschichte der NATO - Zusammenfas…
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Music: Made for Geo History by Ledge End: https://www.beatstars.com/ledgeend
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Software: Adobe After Effects
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Chapters
00:00 The End of WWII
01:43 The North Atlantic Treaty
02:45 The Cold War
04:11 New members
05:32 Destabilization
06:48 The end of the Cold War
08:15 Reorganization \u0026 Yugoslavia
09:59 The Kosovo War
11:14 The war against terrorism
12:36 Interventions around the world
14:08 Ukraine
#geohistory #nato #ukraine #russia #coldwar #history
Content
0.539 -> We begin at the end of World War II.
3.52 -> Among the victors, the USSR and the United
States are now the two world superpowers.
9.28 -> Europe is devastated.
11.72 -> The East of the Old Continent is under the
influence of the Soviet Union.
16.56 -> In February 1948, Czechoslovakia, which is
a parliamentary democracy,
22.091 -> suffers a coup d'état orchestrated by the Communist Party
and supported by the Soviet camp.
28.98 -> In Western Europe, this event leads to fears
that Soviet influence will spread ever further westward.
35.327 -> France, the United Kingdom, and the United
States
38.136 -> agree then to unite their occupation zones in Germany
41.959 -> in order to create a democratic German state that will block Soviet influence.
47.533 -> In addition, the Benelux countries, France, and the United Kingdom sign a defensive alliance to protect themselves,
54.857 -> on the one hand against a possible return of German power,
58.458 -> and on the other against a military intervention
by the USSR, which has the largest army in the world.
65.79 -> The United States, for its part, offers credits
to Europe via the Marshall Plan
70.538 -> to accelerate reconstruction and stem the spread of communism.
74.988 -> Tensions rise, and the continent is divided
by what is called the Iron Curtain.
80.37 -> It is the beginning of the Cold War.
83.36 -> The USSR, which is opposed to the creation
of West Germany,
87.193 -> organizes a blockade of West Berlin, which is under Western control.
92.195 -> Tensions rise further.
94.31 -> This time, the United Kingdom secretly begins
negotiations with the United States and Canada
99.729 -> to establish a common defensive alliance.
106.617 -> On April 4th, 1949, in Washington, twelve
countries sign the North Atlantic Treaty,
113.06 -> also known as the Washington Treaty, a political
and military alliance
117.417 -> whose central point is Article 5, which ensures the collective defense of each of the member countries.
123.95 -> “The Parties agree that an armed attack
against one or more of them in Europe
128.537 -> or North America shall be considered an attack against them all”.
133.239 -> The territories of the signatory countries
north of the Tropic of Cancer are affected,
138.484 -> including the departments of French Algeria,
and Cyprus and Malta, which are British colonies.
144.709 -> The North Atlantic Treaty Organization, or
NATO, is thus created.
149.856 -> Western Europe is now officially under the
protection of the United States,
154.099 -> which is the only nuclear power.
156.98 -> But in a few months, on August 29th, 1949,
the Soviet Union tests its first atomic bomb.
168.312 -> In Asia, the United States and the USSR fail
to reach an agreement on the status of Korea, which is divided.
175.94 -> On June 25th 1950, the North Korean army,
supported by the USSR, invades South Korea.
183.709 -> In response, an international UN force under
the command of the United States counter-attacks.
190.299 -> The United States is heavily involved on this
front, and fears that the USSR will take advantage
196.219 -> of the situation to launch a similar attack
against West Germany,
200.436 -> which is not a member of NATO, and has not been allowed to rearm since the end of World War II.
206.73 -> The United States wants to authorize the country's
rearmament as quickly as possible.
212.049 -> But France, Belgium, and Luxembourg, which had all been invaded by Germany in the two world wars, are opposed.
218.877 -> Instead, France wants to create a European army that would include German forces and be integrated into NATO.
226.39 -> Furthermore, the members of the alliance agree to set up a common structure to better coordinate military actions.
233.389 -> They establish a headquarters at Rocquencourt,
close to Paris.
237.54 -> Each member country will provide, at its own
expense, military forces that will be placed under its command.
244.599 -> The future President of the United States,
Eisenhower, becomes the first Supreme Commander.
254.86 -> In 1952, Greece, which is emerging from a
civil war,
259.341 -> and Turkey, which is turning towards the Western camp, join NATO.
264.13 -> The same year, the alliance continues to structure
itself by creating the position of Secretary General,
270.47 -> who becomes the highest representative of the alliance.
273.812 -> The headquarters of NATO, which had been based
in London for 3 years, is moved to Paris.
279.436 -> In France, parliament rejects the European Defense Community project.
284.443 -> After negotiations, France finally authorizes the rearmament of West Germany
289.538 -> and its integration into NATO, which becomes official on May 6th, 1955.
295.964 -> A few days later, the Eastern Bloc responds by creating the Warsaw Pact,
300.782 -> a military alliance between the countries of Eastern Europe.
304.687 -> The armies of the two alliances mainly face each other on either side of the border that divides Germany.
311.631 -> The United States, which has approximately 400,000 soldiers on European soil,
317.355 -> is now betting on nuclear and installs nuclear weapons in Europe.
322.54 -> Within a few years, Cyprus, Algeria, and then Malta gain their independence.
328.46 -> But none of the three new countries applies
to join NATO.
336.218 -> In France, President Charles de Gaulle is opposed to the US dominance within the alliance.
341.573 -> He then decides that France must leave NATO integrated command,
345.622 -> while still remaining a member of the alliance.
348.526 -> French troops will no longer participate in NATO military actions.
353.164 -> The 30,000 U.S. troops present in France must leave, and NATO headquarters and military command are moved to Belgium.
361.97 -> In 1974, after an attempted coup in Cyprus,
Turkey invades the north of the island militarily.
369.81 -> Greece, unhappy, also leaves NATO integrated
command.
374.1 -> In the following years, the USSR develops
and installs new more powerful nuclear missiles
380.46 -> that threaten Western Europe more precisely.
383.84 -> This rekindles tensions.
386.17 -> In reaction, NATO decides to install new missiles
in five member countries,
391.218 -> while attempting to initiate a policy of détente with the USSR.
395.71 -> In 1980, Greece returns to the integrated
command,
400.097 -> and in 1982, Spain is admitted to NATO following the death of Francisco Franco in 1975.
411.9 -> In the USSR, the economic situation is catastrophic.
416.43 -> Industrial and agricultural production stagnate,
while the country is bogged down in a costly war in Afghanistan.
424.05 -> After the Chernobyl nuclear incident of 1986
the USSR is weakened,
429.176 -> and loses control in Eastern Europe, where pro-Soviet governments fall one by one.
435.6 -> In 1989, the Berlin Wall is torn down.
439.61 -> Mikhail Gorbachev, the head of the USSR, begins
meetings with the West to organize German reunification.
446.78 -> Gorbachev wants Germany to be neutral, while
the West wants it to be a member of NATO.
452.84 -> Long negotiations then begin, during which
the West verbally promises not to extend NATO
458.84 -> one inch eastward in a reunified Germany.
461.67 -> As the Warsaw Pact is still in place, it is
then not imaginable to extend NATO further eastward.
468.875 -> But no agreement or treaty is signed in this
regard.
472.68 -> Finally, Gorbachev agrees that reunified Germany
can be a member of NATO.
478.06 -> A few months later, the Warsaw Pact and then
the USSR are dissolved, marking the end of the Cold War.
486.56 -> NATO accomplished its mission by preserving
peace among its members for over 40 years,
492.268 -> without ever having to engage in combat.
499.7 -> Despite the end of the Cold War, NATO members
decide to maintain the alliance
504.527 -> and adapt it to the new global environment.
507.68 -> From now on, in addition to its defensive
mission,
510.538 -> NATO will be able to intervene beyond its borders to support humanitarian missions,
515.898 -> and to ensure stability in Europe.
518.494 -> In the Balkans, Yugoslavia is weakened by
independence movements.
523.283 -> After Slovenia, Croatia, and Macedonia, Bosnia-Herzegovina proclaims its independence.
530.037 -> But the new country is populated by a large Serbian minority that proclaims its own independence,
536.276 -> and begins a siege of Sarajevo.
539.307 -> The UN then asks NATO to patrol the Adriatic Sea to enforce an arms embargo against Yugoslavia,
546.899 -> which is supporting the Bosnian Serb minority.
550.288 -> The UN then passes a resolution to create a no-fly zone in the skies over Bosnia-Herzegovina.
556.92 -> The NATO air force is given the task of patrolling
to enforce the resolution.
561.972 -> On February 28th, 1994, 6 Serbian planes are
spotted in the exclusion zone bombing a military factory.
571.75 -> Forty-five years after its creation, NATO
engages in its first combat, and shoots down 4 planes.
579.62 -> The following months, NATO begins bombing
campaigns against Bosnian Serb forces,
585.102 -> which intensify until the signing of a peace treaty
on December 14th, 1995.
592.1 -> An international peacekeeping force, under
NATO command, is then established to ensure peace.
602.689 -> After years of meetings and talks, Poland, the Czech Republic, and Hungary join NATO on March 12th, 1999.
611.399 -> In Yugoslavia, Kosovo, which is mainly populated
by Albanians, also has independence claims.
618.269 -> A local armed group attacks Yugoslav forces,
and a civil war breaks out.
624.24 -> Once again, the international community seeks
to intervene,
628.302 -> but this time Russia announces that it will veto a military intervention at the UN.
634.589 -> After the failure of negotiations with Yugoslavia,
637.497 -> NATO takes the initiative to intervene militarily for the first time without a UN mandate,
643.605 -> believing that its role is to avert a humanitarian catastrophe.
648.747 -> For 78 days, NATO massively bombs Yugoslavia,
including the capital, Belgrade.
655.26 -> Finally, an agreement is reached, and the Yugoslav army leaves Kosovo.
660.174 -> NATO then deploys an international force called
KFOR to guarantee security.
665.877 -> Russia, which feels betrayed and sidelined by the West, also sends soldiers to Kosovo to ensure the same mission.
678.06 -> On September 11th, 2001, the United States
is the victim of terrorist attacks on its territory.
685.2 -> For the first time ever, NATO activates Article
5, and commits itself to the fight against terrorism.
692.314 -> Military aircraft are sent to the United States
to patrol the skies,
696.451 -> and a naval force is deployed to the Mediterranean Sea to combat terrorist activities.
702.459 -> The United States, for its part, forms a military
alliance, and goes to war against Afghanistan,
709.269 -> which is ruled by the Taliban, and where Osama
bin Laden is located.
714.309 -> After taking control of the capital Kabul,
716.987 -> an international force is deployed to assist the new government in taking control of the entire country,
723.717 -> and to maintain security.
725.751 -> Two years later, the United States launches
another offensive,
729.903 -> this time against Saddam Hussein's Iraq.
732.988 -> In two months, Baghdad falls.
735.582 -> NATO is then called upon, on the one hand, in Afghanistan, to take command of the international force there,
742.583 -> and on the other hand, in Iraq, to train and supervise the country's new troops.
748.29 -> In 2004, the Baltic States, Slovakia, Slovenia,
Romania, and Bulgaria join NATO.
760.508 -> In 2005, the African Union, which is intervening in Darfur where a war is raging,
766.942 -> asks NATO for support, and obtains logistical and air
transport assistance.
772.66 -> The same year, NATO sends humanitarian aid
to the United States, after Hurricane Katrina,
778.899 -> and to northern Pakistan, after a devastating
earthquake that leaves 4 million people homeless.
785.328 -> In 2008 in Georgia, during a referendum,
788.724 -> 77% of the population announce that they are in favor of joining NATO.
794.374 -> A few months later, at the Bucharest Summit,
797.185 -> NATO members announce their support for Ukraine's and Georgia's applications for NATO membership.
803.714 -> This time, tensions rise with Russia, which claims to be the heir to the USSR,
809.213 -> and which feels increasingly threatened by NATO, which is moving closer and closer to its borders.
815.731 -> In 2009, Croatia and Albania join NATO, while France fully reintegrates into the military structures of the Alliance.
825.12 -> The same year, NATO deploys an international
military fleet off the Horn of Africa
830.582 -> to fight piracy that threatens shipping.
833.559 -> In 2011, NATO intervenes in Libya during the
Arab Spring, officially to protect civilians.
840.779 -> The organization bombs Sirte, where Muammar
Gaddafi had taken refuge, which accelerates his fall.
851.82 -> In 2014, in Ukraine, pro-European demonstrations
turn into a revolution.
857.869 -> The pro-Russian government falls,
859.699 -> and the country is torn between pro-Russian and pro-European supporters.
864.547 -> Russia takes advantage of the chaos to annex Crimea.
868.466 -> In response, NATO suspends all cooperation
with Russia.
872.458 -> In addition, NATO deploys troops in Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Poland.
878.516 -> In 2017, Montenegro join the alliance,
882.175 -> and in 2020, North Macedonia becomes the 30th member of NATO.
887.533 -> The following year in Brussels, NATO members
reiterate their desire to integrate Ukraine into the alliance.
894.949 -> In Afghanistan, the international force leaves
the country
898.467 -> without having succeeded in defeating the Taliban,
901.555 -> who regain control of the country after 20 years of expensive war.
906.968 -> At the end of 2021, Vladimir Putin appeals to NATO to negotiate an end to its expansion to the East.
914.85 -> Without a response, on February 24th, 2022,
he decides to invade Ukraine.
921.839 -> Among the negotiations that take place during
the war,
925.068 -> Russia asks Ukraine to become a neutral country and not to join NATO.
929.709 -> But the war has ironically driven other countries
to now want to join the organization.
935.48 -> Thus, in May 2022, Finland and Sweden officially
announce that they wanted to join NATO.
Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8NlhfoFK9PI