BRUSSELS - “For us, war is not inevitable; we do not believe that there are blind tides of history which sweep men one way or another.” That’s what United States President Harry Truman said on April 4, 1949, when he added his signature to the treaty establishing the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation, the US-led military alliance which has defended Europe ever since.
On April 3, representatives of Nato’s member states will start arriving in the Belgian capital of Brussels to mark the 75th anniversary of their alliance’s foundation. The mood will be one of celebration. Nato had just 12 members at its creation; today, it has 32 member states, with Sweden – the latest addition to the pack – taking its seat for the first time at this week’s summit.
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