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The following references on human rights and OSCE commitments are taken from NATO docu- ments and U.S. law relating to NATO enlargement:
The North Atlantic Treaty of 1949: “They [NATO Members] are determined to safeguard the freedom, common heritage and civili- zation of their peoples, founded on the principles of democracy, individual liberty and the rule of law....” Partnership for Peace Framework Document of 1994: “...Protection and promotion of fundamental freedoms and human rights, and safeguarding of freedom, justice, and peace through democracy are shared values fundamental to the Partnership...They reaffirm their commitment to fulfill in good faith the obligations of the Charter of the United Nations and the principles of the Universal Declaration on Human Rights...They also reaffirm their commitment to the Helsinki Final Act and all subsequent CSCE documents....” NATO Study on Enlargement of 1995: “Prospective members will have to have demonstrated a commitment to and respect for OSCE norms and principles....”
NATO Participation Act of 1994 (PL 103-447): Participants in the Partnership for Peace should be invited to become full NATO members if they...remain committed to protecting the rights of all their citizens....”
Foreign Operations Appropriations for FY’96 (PL 104-107): To be eligible to receive assistance under the NATO Participation Act of 1994, “each country must have made significant progress toward establishing...adherence to the rule of law and to the values, principles, and political commitments set forth in the Helsinki Final Act and other declara- tions by the members of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe....”
NATO Enlargement Facilitation Act of 1996 (PL 104-208): “Protection and promotion of human rights is an integral aspect of genuine security, and in evaluating requests for membership in NATO, the human rights records of the emerging democ- racies in Central and Eastern Europe should be evaluated according to their commitments to fulfill in good faith the human rights obligations of the Charter of the United Nations, the prin- ciples of the Universal Declaration on Human Rights, and the Helsinki Final Act.” 14
Human rights and fundamental freedoms are the birthright of all human beings, are inalienable and are guaranteed by law. Their protection and promotion is the first responsibility of government. Respect for them is an essential safeguard against an over-mighty State. Their observance and full exercise are the foundation of freedom, justice and peace.
Democratic government is based on the will of the people, expressed regularly through free and fair elections. Democracy has as its foundation respect for the human person and the rule of law. Democracy is the best safeguard of freedom of expression, tolerance of all groups of society, and equality of opportunity for each person.
Democracy, with its representative and pluralist character, entails accountability to the elector- ate, the obligation of public authorities to comply with the law and justice administered impartially. No one will be above the law. We affirm that, without discrimination, every individual has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion or belief, freedom of expression, freedom of association and peaceful assembly, freedom of movement; no one will be: subject to arbitrary arrest or detention, subject to torture or other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment; everyone also has the right: to know and act upon his rights, to participate in free and fair elections, to fair and public trial if charged with an offence, to own property alone or in association and to exercise individual enterprise, to enjoy his economic, social and cultural rights. 15
15 Page 16 17 12 We affirm that the ethnic, cultural, linguistic and religious identity of national minorities will be protected and that persons belonging to national minorities have the right freely to express, preserve and develop that identity without any discrimination and in full equality before the law. We will ensure that everyone will enjoy recourse to effective remedies, national or international, against any violation of his rights.
Full respect for these precepts is the bedrock on which we will seek to construct the new Europe. Our States will cooperate and support each other with the aim of making democratic gains irre- versible. 16
Bearing in mind that there is no fixed or rigid list of criteria for inviting new members to join the Alliance, possible new member states will, nevertheless, be expected to:
17 Page 18 19 14 The Alliance expects new members not to “close the door” to the accession of one or more later candidate members, as referred to also in paragraph 30 of Chapter 2.
Prospective members will have to have:
The ability of prospective members to contribute militarily to collective defence and to the Alliance’s new missions will be a factor in deciding whether to invite them to join the Alliance.
New members will need to adapt themselves to the fact that NATO’s strategy and force structure are designed to exploit multinationality and flexibility to provide effective defence at minimum cost. NATO policy is therefore heavily dependent on standardization, particularly in the areas of operations, administration and material. Current NATOstandardization priorities include commonality of doc- trines and procedures, interoperability of command, control and communications and major weapon systems, and interchangeability of ammunition and primary combat supplies. 18
18 Page 19 20 15 There are at present over 1200 agreements and publications that new members should undertake to comply with. Compliance should be an evolutionary and controlled process to enhance Alliance operational effectiveness. Although national participation in standardization is optional, there are a number of areas, such as communication and information systems and measures to facilitate reinforce- ments where military necessity requires participation. One way of achieving improved interoperability might be for new members to select units that can act as cornerstone units around which the rest of their forces can be developed with priority being given to maximizing these units’ interoperability with existing NATO units. To determine the minimum requirements necessary for operational effective- ness, a review of the STANAGs and Allied Publications is already under way. A country-by-country assessment of prospective new members’ standardization will also be required, based on levels of standardization displayed during the full range of PfP military and defence activities. A proposal should be developed by the Alliance in consultation with the prospective new member so that it will under- stand what will be expected of it. In addition, NATO schools and training will need to be developed so that the forces of new members can achieve interoperability with NATO in a reasonable time, and new members can adapt to NATO doctrine across a broad spectrum of activities. Although the funding of new members’ enhanced interoperability is their responsibility, it poses important challenges for the Alliance as a whole. There is a military imperative to achieve the mini- mum level of interoperability required for military effectiveness as quickly as possible. There is also a political imperative to demonstrate intra-Alliance cohesion, to ensure that new members feel that they are participating fully in the Alliance and to enable them to make an equitable contribution to collec- tive defence at an early stage. In principle, both objectives should be achieved within the existing arrangements for funding Allies’ development, procurement, infrastructure and other costs (i.e. using national resources and the Security Investment Programme as appropriate).
FOOTNOTE: 1. These include, in particular: The Agreement on the Status of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, National Representa- tives and International Staff (Ottawa Convention, 1951);
The NATO Agreement on the Mutual Safeguarding of Secrecy of Inventions relating to Defence, and for which applications for Patents have been made (Paris, 1960); The Agreement between the Parties to the North Atlantic Treaty regarding the Status on their Forces (London, 1951); The NATO Agreement on the Communication of Technical Information for defence Purposes Brussels, 1970); as well as The Strategic Concept; Summit Declarations and NAC decisions in Ministerial and permanent session as reflect in NAC Communiques, including those issued in Oslo in June 1992 and Brussels in December 1992 in which the Alliance undertook to support, on a case-by-case basis in accordance with its own procedures, peacekeeping activities under the responsibility of the OSCE and peacekeeping operations under the authority of the U.N. Security Council, including by making available Alliance resources and expertise;
Documents on cooperation between NATO and any partner state already agreed with new member(s) join the Alliance, recognizing that Alliance polices evolve over time and in the light of new circumstances. 19