Footsteps of the Third World War and the Role of NATO (1)

The NATO Summit, held on 14 June 2021 with the participation of Heads of State, built the agenda of the 2020s on the understanding of "Deterrence and Strengthening Defense". In particular, the issue of preventing Russian expansion has paved the way for the organization to maintain a military presence in the east and southeast of Europe as a "common goal". In the Summit Declaration, which also welcomes the membership of Ukraine and Georgia, China's behavior was also described as a "challenge to the system".
The common 'silent acceptance' of NATO member countries at this summit is behind the US's defiant attitude change against China, which strained the international system and increased the tension in the Indo-Pacific Region, which became well evident with the establishment of AUKUS (Australian, British and US alliance) in September. is also sleeping.
The NATO Defense Ministers meeting on October 21, 2021, held as a continuation of the 2021 Summit, approved the elaboration and execution of political and military work within the framework of deterrence. The master plan, adopted by NATO defense ministers, was drafted to serve the purpose of 'reaffirming that the alliance's primary objective is to deter Russia, despite increased focus on China'. Thus, NATO defense ministers; “The Baltic and the Black Sea have approved the preparation of detailed regional defense plans, mainly in Eastern Europe, the build-up of military forces against Russia and the closer NATO to the Russian borders.
In order to better understand the 2020s, when significant tensions and crises are being experienced around the world, let's go back a bit, let's look at the post-World War II period...
With the United Nations (UN) agreement signed on June 26, 1945, the provision that the five big states (USA, England, France, Russia and China) who were given veto power for the solution of world issues would not try to gain land was jointly accepted.
On the other hand, Stalin did not forget that in the first days of the Bolshevik Revolution, the Entente powers led by England supported the pro-tsarist Russians. In addition, the atomic bombs dropped by the USA on Japan made the Soviets uneasy, as they ensured the surrender of Japan, while at the same time highlighting the military superiority of the USA. Stalin acted with the idea of ​​creating a “buffer zone” between the West, which is hostile to the communist ideology, and which would consist of satellite states of the Soviets. This idea formed the basis of Soviet post-war policy in Eastern Europe.
The defeat of Nazi Germany and Japan and their elimination in the international system revealed wide gaps in the east and west of the Soviet Union, which reached enormous size. At the end of the Great War, there was no power left to stop the Russians except America, which had withdrawn most of its forces from Europe. Russia, who wants to take advantage of this opportunity as soon as possible; It quickly started to form a buffer zone in the lands to the west.
Even during the war, all of Estonia, Lithuania and Latvia were occupied by the Russians. Poland, Romania, Northeast Germany, and parts of the Czech Republic and Slovakia were also annexed to Russia. After the war, the Russians, who took action primarily to realize their de facto expansion to the west, started to invade Eastern European countries. Albania, Bulgaria, East Germany, Romania, Poland, Hungary, Czechoslovakia at that time were forced to accept Russian domination. Thus, Russia took over almost all of Eastern Europe, added 87 million inhabitants with a total land of 1 400 000 km², and seized a wealth that corresponds to more than half of the Russian national income.
Meanwhile, the Russians did not neglect to make an attempt to intimidate Turkey, by demanding Kars and Ardahan, both politically and militarily. However, Turkey's rightful reactions and its tendency towards an attitude that increases solidarity with the Western society have failed the attempt of the Russians to occupy Turkish lands.
On the other hand, the efforts of the Soviets to spread communist ideology and the establishment of communist satellite-states in Eastern Europe caused great fear in America. For this reason, starting from 1947, American foreign policy redrafted: The struggle against communism, and especially Western Europe's protection from the Soviet influence, was built on the understanding of the "containment" of the Soviets, after which they remained in the American sphere of influence.
With the doctrine published by the US President Truman on March 12, 1947, it was aimed to stand by the countries that wanted to be subjugated by the Russian pressure and resisted against it, and in this context, to counter the Russian threat against Turkey and Greece.
In the meantime, it is aimed to support the Western European countries, which needed to revive post-war development and economic activities, with financial aid and to protect them with alliance systems against the Soviets.
is gone.
In this direction, US Secretary of State (also former Chief of Staff) Marshall, who made a speech at Harvard University on June 5, 1947, pioneered, in a way, the initiation of the European development program and the transition to today's European Union structure. With this program called Marshall Aid, it was aimed to prevent the economic destruction of Western European countries, which were worn out by the war, with American aid. As a matter of fact, this aid mechanism, which also aims to increase the foreign trade of the USA, brought relief to many European states and paved the way for the re-development and development of Europe.
Within the scope of security needs, on March 17, 1948, England, France, Luxembourg, Netherlands and Belgium came together to establish a common defense system and to strengthen their economic and cultural ties. For this purpose, this union was signed by these four states with the Brussels Agreement on the same date. These countries wanted to show that the West had the will to defend against the Soviets by establishing a military organization together. This agreement and the military organization played an important role in forming the core of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).
In fact, the European organization emerged with the guidance of England. During this period, England, whose own power was worn down, played the role of "catalyst" in order to put the USA into the game. In this context, NATO was established after Britain convinced the USA how important it was for the US interests to take part in an organization to be established for the defense of Europe. Prior to that, a resolution taken in the US Senate on June 11, 1948 (the Vandenberg decision) allowed the US government to abandon its traditional policy and conclude mutual defense agreements with countries required by its national security.
Ultimately, the USA, which wants to be included in the formation of Europe, and Canada, which acts together with this country; He brought forward a joint defense agreement that would connect the countries on the Atlantic coast. As a result, the USA, Canada, Denmark, Norway, Italy, Iceland and Portugal also participated in the states that signed the Brussels Agreement, so the founding deed of NATO was signed in Washington on April 4, 1949.
The primary institutional consequence of the creation of NATO was the establishment of a bridge of cooperation between North America and Europe, called Atlanticism. NATO's apparent purpose was to "keep the Russians out, the Americans in, and the Germans down," as expressed by its first Secretary-General, Lord Ismay, in a 1949 speech.
In general terms, NATO's purpose is to ensure the freedom and security of member states through political and military means.
Politically, NATO; It promotes democratic values ​​and offers its members an environment of consultation and cooperation on defense and security to resolve problems, build trust and prevent conflicts in the long run.
NATO in the military context; It has taken it upon itself to resolve conflicts through peaceful means. If diplomatic attempts fail, crisis management has the military power to organize the operation. These operations are carried out on the basis of the collective defense clause of NATO's founding treaty (Article 5 of the Washington Treaty) or under the orders of the United Nations, alone or in cooperation with other countries and international organizations.
The real meaning of NATO's existence is succinctly revealed in NATO's flag and emblem. The NATO flag consists of a four-pointed star surrounded by a circle on a dark navy blue.
Dark blue ground: Atlantic waters,
Yıldız: Always the right direction, namely peace,
Circle: It expresses that the member countries of NATO are surrounded and protected around the right path and peace.
As a result of the London agreement of 17 October 1951, Turkey and Greece joined NATO on 18 February 1952. In terms of its security, especially in the cramped period after the Second World War, Turkey has chosen NATO membership as a safe harbor to take refuge in. The conditions of the period brought the Republican People's Party and later the Democrat Party governments to this point.
Membership in NATO was also seen by Turkish politicians as compatible with the foreign policy framework drawn by Atatürk. As a matter of fact, Atatürk, who fought against Western imperialism, did not ignore the level of civilization, science and technology that the West had reached. The westernization of Turkey has been one of Atatürk's main goals. As a result, it can be said that NATO membership has accelerated Turkey's Westernization process to some extent.
Let's continue with today's article by stating that we will discuss the Turkey-NATO relationship in detail in another article.
NATO's expansion has continued since its founding years. On May 9, 1955, West Germany became a member of NATO, and the idea of ​​"keeping down" the Germans was spontaneously shelved out. The establishment of NATO in Europe prevented the Soviets from displaying an expansionist policy in Europe. With its transition to democratic life, Spain also became a NATO member in 1982. Thus, during the Cold War period, the total number of NATO members reached 16.
As it is known, the twentieth century has changed all existing balances in international relations. During this period, two major world wars took place. NATO and the Warsaw Pact (VP), the product of the East-West rivalry after the Second World War; can be seen as a result of states acting with an understanding that prioritizes security for their survival. However, during the Cold War, the balance of terror based on nuclear weapons confronted the world with the fear that a third world war might break out at any moment. During these years, NATO gave importance to institutionalization with various summits and concepts. Over the years, NATO's existence has enabled the pact member states to see and internalize it as an indispensable element of security. Particularly, NATO's ability to intervene in crises and conflicts and its cooperation with international organizations such as the European Union (EU) and the UN for peace within a neo-liberal strategy since the 1980s allow NATO to remain permanent even after the Cold War. has known.
It would undoubtedly be wrong to see NATO as merely a military alliance. NATO; it also serves as a strong cooperation platform of member states in every field. The deed of alliance and alliance relations play an encouraging role in this context. In this context, during the Cold War, NATO was seen as an organization that ensures the preservation of its own values ​​and gains by the member states of the Western bloc on the democracy front. In other words, NATO, which is the means of preserving the superiority of the West over the East, has been supported by all Western states without exception (except France's leaving the military wing based on her preference).
According to one thought, “NATO; It is an organization that aims to defend the USA far from its own borders, to wage the war on the territory of other countries, and to ensure that American soil is not damaged by a possible war. While there is no doubt that this view has a high degree of justification, with the end of the Cold War and the disintegration of the Warsaw Pact, NATO's continued existence without an apparent "enemy" was again possible under the leadership of the USA. NATO has maintained its legitimacy on the grounds that it facilitates cooperation between states and international organizations on security and other issues and acts with the principle of humanitarian responsibility. Thus, it has carried itself out of the field and, since the 1990s, has become the 'policeman' of the world.
Meanwhile, the course of the Western political and military structuring, which was shaped under the leadership of Stalin between 1945-1953, continues to be shaped around another Russian leader, Putin. In our next article, we will talk about after 1990.

(To be continued)
References:
Baytok T. (2001). A Soldier, a Diplomat, Güven Erkaya-Taner Baytok Interview, Doğan Kitap, İstanbul.
Goksel O.L. (1955). Turkish-Russian Enmity and the Fifteen Apostles of Peace, NATO, Faculty Press, Istanbul.
Cretan I. (1968). Why "Yes to NATO"? Ak Publications, Baha Printing, Istanbul.
Şahin G. (2016). Global Security and NATO, Detay Publishing, Ankara
BBC News. (2021). NATO summit final statement: China's behavior 'challenging the system', 14 June, <https://www.bbc.com/turkce/haberler-dunya-57471476>, p.e.t. 22.10.2021.
Sputnik Turkey. (2021). NATO defense ministers meeting: Anti-Russian masterplan focusing on Black Sea approved, October 22, <https://tr.sputniknews.com/20211021/nato-defense-ministers-meeting-black-sea-focused-russia-anti-master-plan -approved-1050061920.html>, set 22.10.2021.
NATO official site, Members, <https://www.nato.int/nato-welcome/index_en.html>, p.e.t. 22.10.2021.

Ertung M. (1957) NATO Kuruluş Sebepleri ve Gayesi, Yıl:1, Sayı:1, KKK İstanbul Askeri Basımevi, İstanbul, s.1-9.