Becoming a NATO member can take years, often several, involving political/military reforms and consensus among all members, but can also happen relatively quickly (under a year) if conditions are right, as seen with Finland and Sweden joining rapidly after applying in 2022, though Sweden's ratification faced delays from Turkey and Hungary. The process requires a country to meet democratic/security criteria, participate in a Membership Action Plan (MAP), agree to NATO's aims, and then get unanimous approval and ratification by all existing members.
The ratification process usually takes about a year after the initial signing of the Accession Protocol by all the Member States. Montenegro was invited to join the MAP in December 2009 and joined NATO in June 2017. The Republic of Macedonia joined the MAP in 1999.
Previously, in 2006, NATO Defence Ministers agreed to commit a minimum of 2% of their GDP to defence spending. The combined wealth of the non-US Allies, measured in GDP, is almost equal to that of the United States. However, non-US Allies together spend less than half of what the United States spends on defence.
--New members must be making progress toward a market economy. --Their military forces must be under firm civilian control. --They must be good neighbors and respect sovereignty outside their borders. --They must be working toward compatibility with NATO forces.
Countries wishing to join must meet certain requirements and complete a multi-step process involving political dialogue and military integration. The accession process is overseen by the North Atlantic Council, NATO's governing body.
Though Australia is not a NATO member, its ties to the organisation have grown as a result of ADF deployments to Afghanistan under the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force.
While NATO holds a significant military advantage through its integrated command, interoperability, and massive defense spending, BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, and new members) offers formidable economic power, vast populations, and growing military strength, particularly from China and Russia, making it a powerful economic bloc with potential, though less coordinated, military might. NATO excels in collective defense and rapid deployment, whereas BRICS excels in global economic influence and sheer scale, with its power stemming from individual member strengths rather than a unified military structure.
The formal process is stated in article 13 of the Treaty. This says that any country that wants to leave must send the United States (as the depositary state) a "notice of denunciation", which the U.S. would then pass on to the other Allies. After a one-year waiting period, the country that wants to leave would be out.
Getting a job at NATO is competitive but not impossible.
It is located at NATO Headquarters in Brussels, Belgium. USNATO represents U.S. foreign policy interests within the Alliance. The mission is a diverse team of individuals representing numerous U.S. federal agencies.
The NATO Alliance consists of 32 member states from North America and Europe. Article Five of the treaty states that if an armed attack occurs against one of the member states, it should be considered an attack against all members, and other members shall assist the attacked member, with armed forces if necessary.
Article 7. This Treaty does not affect, and shall not be interpreted as affecting in any way the rights and obligations under the Charter of the Parties which are members of the United Nations, or the primary responsibility of the Security Council for the maintenance of international peace and security.
Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty states that an armed attack against one NATO member shall be considered an attack against all members, and triggers an obligation for each member to come to its assistance.
Finland - which has a 1,340km (832-mile) land border with Russia - joined in April 2023. Sweden became a member in March 2024. Having been neutral for decades, both applied to Nato in May 2022, shortly after Russia invaded Ukraine. Ukraine, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Georgia are not members but have asked to join.
NATO provides peace and stability
NATO provides a blanket of protection and mutual security for all its members, helping explain why the vast majority of countries in central and eastern Europe clamored to join NATO after the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991.
How Much Do NATO Employees Make? The average compensation for a NATO employee is $103,333 per year. Ladders estimates are based on our calculations.
How long does the selection process take? The selection process takes approximately six months from the launch of the application call until the final nomination of the selected candidates.
Russia announced in July 2007 that it would no longer adhere to the Adapted Conventional Armed Forces in Europe Treaty (CFE Treaty) because NATO had still not ratified it. NATO had said it would not ratify the treaty until Russia ended its occupation of Moldova and Georgia.
He was not the top student he sometimes claimed to be. By the time he went to Wharton—where he does not appear in a list of those receiving honors—he was eyeing a career in real estate. He was exempted from the draft during the Vietnam War due to a claim of bone spurs in his heels.
From Slovenia to Iceland: 7 NATO countries with the lowest military strength
F-35As contribute to US nuclear forward deployment in European NATO countries. The U.S. plans to buy 2,456 F-35s through 2044, which will represent the bulk of its crewed fixed-wing tactical aviation for several decades; the aircraft is to be a cornerstone of NATO and U.S.-allied air power and operate until 2070.
The United States is consistently ranked as having the #1 most powerful military in the world for 2025 by organizations like Global Firepower and Business Insider. This ranking stems from its massive defense budget, advanced technology, global power projection, and dominance in air, sea, and cyber warfare, though China has the largest number of active personnel.