However, the situation can change quickly if Moscow’s attack on Ukraine spreads to a NATO member country and provokes a reaction based on the principle of Article 5 of the alliance.
What is Article 5?
Article 5 states that an attack on one NATO member is an attack on all members. It has been the cornerstone of the 30-member alliance since its founding in 1949 as a counterweight to the Soviet Union.
The principle is aimed at deterring potential adversaries from attacking NATO members. Article 5 ensures that the resources of the entire alliance can be used to protect any individual member state. This is crucial for many small countries that would be defenseless without their allies. Iceland, for example, does not have a standing army.
Since the US is the largest and most powerful member of NATO, any state in the alliance is effectively under the protection of the US.
According to the NATO website, Article 5 specifically states:
“The parties agree that an armed attack against one or more of them in Europe or North America shall be considered an attack against all of them, and, therefore, they agree that, if such an armed attack occurs, each of them, exercising the right of individual or collective self-defence recognized by Article 51 of the Charter of the United Nations, will assist the Party or Parties so attacked by immediately taking, individually and jointly with other Parties, such action as it deems necessary, including the use of armed forces to restore and maintain security in the North Atlantic area .
Any such armed attack and all measures taken in connection with it must be immediately brought to the attention of the Security Council. Such measures shall cease when the Security Council takes the measures necessary for the restoration and maintenance of international peace and security.”
During the Cold War, the main concern was the Soviet Union, but in recent years, Russia’s aggressive actions in Eastern Europe have come under the spotlight.
Has Article 5 ever been invoked?
Article 5 has only been invoked once: after the September 11, 2001 attacks in the United States.
But NATO’s Article 5 principle goes beyond home attacks. The Alliance has also taken collective defense measures on several occasions, including the deployment of Patriot missiles in 2012 on the Syrian-Turkish border and the reinforcement of its forces in Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland following Russia’s 2014 annexation of Crimea.
NATO allies have also joined the US for the fighting in Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria.
How does Article 5 apply to Russia’s attack on Ukraine?
Since Ukraine is not a member of NATO, the US is not obligated to defend the country in the same way as it would be in the event of an attack on a NATO member country.
But many of Ukraine’s neighbors are NATO members, and if a Russian attack spreads to one of those countries, Article 5 could provoke direct intervention by the US and other NATO members.
What constitutes an attack on a NATO member country?
The wording of Article 5 indicates that an “armed attack” against a member country is what triggers collective action.
But what constitutes an “armed attack” is up to NATO members, and Russia’s aggressive stance has already raised concerns about the country’s willingness to potentially tempt a NATO response.
For example, Democratic Senator Mark Warner of Virginia. told The Washington Post recently that a Russian cyber attack on Ukraine could have repercussions beyond alleged “geographical boundaries” and affect NATO members.
“Ultimately it could end up in Poland or Romania or the Baltic countries and cause damage that will lead to the closure of hospitals and you might have American troops there. get very close to Article 5,” Warner, Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman, reported the portal.
The Russian attack on the Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant, Europe’s largest, raised similar concerns. While local authorities have said that “radiation levels have not changed” in the area, what if there was a radiation leak that spread to a NATO member country? told CNN earlier this month. “In particular, I would just like to recall that Article 5 makes it clear that an armed attack against a NATO ally gives effect to Article 5… But how to interpret it is really a matter for the NATO alliance to decide.”
What are US officials currently saying about Article 5?
US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken reaffirmed the commitment of the United States and its allies to Article 5 of NATO, saying: “If any aggression occurs anywhere in NATO territory against NATO countries, we, the United States, all our allies and partners will take action.” protect every inch of NATO territory. It’s so clear and direct.” our collective strength.”
CNN’s Jeremy Herb contributed to this report.