21st Century Collective Defense Alliances
The Alliance aims to preserve peace and protect the citizens of NATO Allies by denying aggression, deterring conflict, preserving freedom of action and decision, defending principles and values like human rights and democracy, and supporting the rules-based international order. It achieves its objectives by collective strength, backed by an effective transatlantic defence and deterrence posture across all domains – land, maritime, air and space.
Technological advancements have shaped global security dynamics in the 21st century, impacting how Collective Defense Alliances can respond to modern threats. They are now able to share sophisticated military technologies and improve communication systems. They are also better able to respond to a variety of crisis situations in a 360-degree approach.
At the 2023 Vilnius Summit, Allied Leaders strengthened the Alliance’s resilience, reaffirming an all-of-Allyship commitment to NATO’s defence investment pledge of 2% of GDP. This enables the Alliance to meet its current defence requirements and future requirements in a contested security environment.
The NATO Alliance is a treaty-based organization that includes all 28 member states of the European Union (EU), plus Iceland, Norway and Liechtenstein. Its Article 5 provides for mutual defense in case of an armed attack by one or more of its members.
The most serious asymmetric threat facing Allies today is terrorism. Its causes are often linked to instability, conflict and fragility in parts of the world outside NATO borders. The Alliance is strengthening its capacity to address these challenges through an all-hazards and whole-of-society approach, including civil preparedness, and by developing strategic, domain-specific planning capabilities.
