NATO and Terrorism

“A key feature of terrorism is that it is directed at a wider audience or target than the immediate victims. It is one of the earliest forms of psychological warfare. An inevitable corollary is that terrorism entails attacks on random and symbolic targets, including civilians, in order to create a climate of extreme fear among a wider group.” (Buckley and Fawn, pg. 1)

Whenever, any country or a nation is at a critical stage and it feels that someone might capture his homeland, and then he bears the courage to fight for his homeland as for the love of his country. There are special rules and principles according to which countrymen can protect their nation from enemies. An alliance was formed by the European countries and the US when they were facing attacks from the Soviet Nations. To fight for their land, they created an alliance which is called NATO.

The abbreviation of NATO is North Atlantic Treaty Organization. It was created to promote harmony among the member countries and throughout the world. The basic responsibilities of the NATO soldiers were to remove the people whose lives were at stake near the borderline so that they could be accommodated too much safer places then those. In this regard, every member country was bound to follow all the instructions of this allied force in connection of the co-operation and peace among these countries. When this allied force was created there were about 51 countries in it and now it comprises about 189 countries. Basically, history tells that it was the unity of all the European nations, United States and Canada against a Soviet attack on their participating or friend nations.

“The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), as it often has been, is once again at the center of this debate. Today NATO is once again a subject of concern and debate. Member states have put the organization through a major structural overhaul, but there continue to be doubts concerning its future in the absence of a threat”. (Cohen et al, pg. 20)

The NATO is said to be an allied force as it is so it fights against terrorism but the main point to this topic is that if the NATO is fighting against terrorism then terrorism may surely be affecting it in many ways.

The most favorable prove in this regard is the 9/11 attack on the World Trade Center in the Washington District of the United States of America. “After the events of September 11 2001, a stunned US President George W. Bush declared that ‘night fell on a different world. There was indeed horror around much of the globe that a new and insidious precedent had been set for terror against states, making everyone vulnerable.” (Buckley and Fawn, pg. 1)

This effected the reputation and name of the NATO. While within 24 hours of the attack the NATO declared and proved that it was a plan to destroy the image of the NATO and somewhere they have succeeded. But the real plan was to kill the soldiers of the NATO. However, gradually the planes and aircrafts turned towards the WTC and bumped into the world’s highest building. Till then the NATO has been trying to curb terrorism and is in fight of this fearful activity and its activists.

However, nowadays, the NATO is working against terrorism in Afghanistan and is trying its level best to damage the hideouts of those jihad militants. The NATO fully recognized its duties after the September 11 2001 attacks, which proved to be harmful for the works of the NATO. After that they started an active participation in fight against terrorism and their first operation was chained outside Europe.

The North Atlantic Council, which is the central body of the NATO, directs it from where to start and all the NATO officials have to present their work history or their efforts to this Head Quarter named the North Atlantic Council. The NATO militants are offered their services from here and one is punctual and strict to abide the rules and principles of the Head Quarter.

Recently, the 2006 attacks in Turkey by terrorist groups were highly condemned by the NATO and at a conference held at the NAC0 the base commander declared his sympathy with the people of Turkey and strongly condemned the attitudes of the terrorist groups. The point is only that if these terrorist groups and their militants want us to move from their places then they should clearly come and fight with the NATO’s allied forces, while in this way they are not opening the ways of sympathy for them but are creating an emotional of hate in the hearts and minds of the people.

This conflict and war of terror between NATO and the terrorists have made the lives of people miserable. They do not care about who is living or who dies. The conflicting situation is continoulsy-disturbing the lives of people and is forcing them to kill themselves because of fear and terror but who cares because nobody would leave this war. Everyone should standby his conditions and all is well that end is well. People would die and last of the entire world would be free of us. Terrorist attacks in Algeria are also increasing but all are helpless in front of the terrorist forces.

According to a NATO press release, the Secretary General of the NATO strongly condemning the attacks said that on behalf of all the brave and courageous commandos of the NATO, I strongly condemn the terrorist attacks on Algeria and this is a promise that the NATO will always stand by the Algerians as our Mediterranean teams is also working. We hope for further development in decreasing the number of terrorists from the terrorist affected areas because our teams are working there to combat with the terrorists.

However, after the September 11, 2001 attacks, the NATO has become more serious and effective in playing its complete role against terrorism. Now, the forces of the NATO are removing people who are living near the terrorist camps especially in Afghanistan. The forces of the NATO fear that these people might be victimized in their context so it would be better to remove and relocate them to a much safer place. The NATO has been much supported and encouraged by its partners in regard of the fight against terrorism. The member countries are always present to help the NATO manage voluntary camps and they also launch campaigns for the betterment of theses courageous soldiers.

Nowadays the plan, which is residing among the partner countries, comprises of the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council and the NATO-Russia Council. These two comprise of the supporting countries that have been with the NATO since its formation and have supported this alliance against terrorism in every positive means.

Apart from its member countries, the NATO is also sharing up its part with other international organizations and is taking and giving information to those organizations so that their law enforcement agencies could be proven helpful for the NATO in finding fearful and wanted people. In accordance with all of the above statements it has been proved that the NATO is trying its level best to curb the germ named terrorism but is continuously failing in it because the rising umber of crimes and criminals. However, a team like the NATO should be within every country so that it could have a worldwide terror-curbing network.

“Israel and its overseas network in the US…. (threatens) not only the oppressed people of Palestine (and Iraq, Iran, Lebanon, Syria and any other state Israel takes aim at) but the rights of people throughout the world.” He stresses we have mass public opinion on our side nearly everywhere outside the US, and it’s gaining resonance here as well. It sees Israel and our actions in support of the Israeli state as the greatest of all threats to world peace and stability. Petras ends his book with one final impassioned call to arms: “Let’s move ahead and de-colonize our country, our minds and politics as a first step in reconstituting a democratic republic, free of entangling colonial and neo-imperial alliances.” (Petras, 2006)

It has been proved that what were the aims and objectives on which the NATO was created. However, it is reminded again that when the US and UK colonies and European nations faced severe attacks from the sides of the Soviet Unions and Soviet nations, then they decided to create an allied force named the NATO. The NATO is supposed to be helpful in curbing the roots of terrorism and it is doing it as its prime duty but the greatest terrorist shock that rocked the whole world as well as the NATO was the 9/11 attacks.

“The September 11, 2001, attacks on the United States have made a smooth joint planning and coordination process even more urgent. While NATO invoked for the first time in its history its collective defense clause, it seems likely that the United States will coordinate its planned attacks on terrorist targets outside the European theater with individual allies rather than through the North Atlantic Council. As a result of the attacks, Washington will be reluctant to add more resources to Balkan peace management, at least in the short term”. (Cohen et al, pg. 74)

After these severe attacks, the NATO became more terror and fear conscious and now it has started its operations in Afghanistan and the Ukraine Mediterranean area. However, besides all of this conflicts and situation, terrorism has always been a wall in the social and humanitarian services of the NATO. Wherever the NATO services try to spread peace and harmony, there is a bomb blast reported and same of every attack, the name and the blame comes directly on the allied force the NATO.

The NATO has been contributing its services since 1955 and the countries, which are supporting it, should understand to announce an increase in the security of the soldiers. In that, if anybody is severely injured or dies during the military operations, the there should be special arrangements to remind those soldiers who contributed their part for the beloved country land. These soldiers should be regarded as a part of an active and alive society so that the forth-coming generation could remind the services of the beloved ones who sacrificed their lives for the love for their country. In that, it should be remembered and recognized that if these brave soldiers are neither paid tributes for their services or are never recognized for their never ending courage, we will lose these brave soldiers and then we should be ready to face another shock of a new Soviet or another union.

Works Cited

James Petras (Sep 26, 2006). The Power of Israel in the United States.

Lenard J. Cohen, Alexander Moens, and Allen G. Sens. Praeger. NATO and European Security: Alliance Politics from the End of the Cold War to the Age of Terrorism. Westport, CT. Year: 2003. Page Number: 20

Mary Buckley and Rick Fawn. Global Responses to Terrorism: 9/11, Afghanistan and beyond. Routledge.  New York, Year: 2003. Page Number: 1