The North Atlantic Council (NAC) is the body which has effective governance authority and powers of decision in NATO, consisting of member states' permanent representatives or representatives at higher level (ministers of foreign affairs or defence, or heads of state or government). Initially the Council consisted of NATO members' foreign ministers and met annually. Our staff and fellows come from many different backgrounds, disciplines, and countries. It includes 20 non-NATO countries that support NATO's purpose. NATO is the bedrock of transatlantic security, encompassing thirty democracies across North America and Europe. Accordingly, the North Atlantic Council was formed. Created to defend against the Soviet Union, the Alliance today protects member states against conventional attack, engages in peacekeeping and stabilization operations, and leads counterterrorism and piracy efforts. Article 9 of the North Atlantic Treaty requires NATO members to "establish a Council, on which each of them shall be represented." Search experts by name NATO constantly reviews and transforms its policies, capabilities and structures to ensure that it can continue to address current and future challenges to the freedom and security of its members. History. The first is the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council, which helps partners become NATO members. NATO is an Alliance that consists of 30 independent member countries. The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) As NATO readies for what some believe is a new Cold War with Russia, the seventy-year-old alliance struggles to manage widening internal divisions. NATO works with partner countries around the world and … The NATO-Russia Council (NRC) was established by the 2002 Rome Declaration. Search for Atlantic Council experts by name or use the filters below to segment by Affiliation, Issue, Region, or Program. NATO members have committed to spending 2 percent of their annual gross domestic product (GDP) on defense, but by 2019 just eight out of the twenty-nine members … Defense Ministers of 15 NATO member countries met within the Nuclear Planning Group and Defense Planning Committee. The NATO-Russia Council (NRC) is a mechanism for consultation, consensus-building, cooperation, joint decision and joint action, in which each individual NATO member state and Russia work as equal partners on a wide spectrum of security issues of common interest. NATO decided to suspended cooperation with Russia in 2014 following Russia's Ukraine invasion, not including the NATO-Russia Council. It began in 1991. On 2-3 December, the first meeting of the NATO-Russia Permanent Joint Council was held at the Defense Minister level. NATO Member Countries. Military chiefs of staff from 44 countries also met in the framework of the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council. Russia and NATO have held several meetings since 2016, and NATO states that an improvement in their relationship with Russia is dependent on Russia's compliance with international law and their commitments. Country by country, this page offers an overview of the links to national information servers and to the website of national delegations to NATO. NATO participates in three alliances that expand its influence beyond its 30 member countries. NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) is an international alliance that consists of 30 member states from North America and Europe.It was established at the signing of the North Atlantic Treaty on 4 April 1949.