(NewsNation) — Poland invoked NATO Article 4 after shooting down Russian drones in its airspace during overnight attacks on Ukraine.
The incursion set off panic in the international community, reigniting concerns that the war between Ukraine and Russia could escalate into a larger-scale global conflict.
“This situation brings us the closest we have been to open conflict since World War Two,” Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said.
What is NATO Article 4?
NATO Article 4 allows member countries to initiate a discussion with the alliance concerning threats to national security; however, it doesn’t necessarily require members to take action.
“The Parties will consult together whenever, in the opinion of any of them, the territorial integrity, political independence or security of any of the Parties is threatened,” the article states.
Article 4 serves as a precursor to collective action by the alliance and could lead to discussion related to the invocation of NATO’s most critical provision, Article 5.
Article 5 states that an attack against one member country is considered an attack against all members, thereby justifying assistance to the nation under threat. It has only been used once since NATO was founded, and that was following the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks in New York City.
When has Article 4 been used in the past?
This marks the eighth time Article 4 has been invoked since the founding of NATO in 1949.
Most recently in 2022, multiple Eastern European nations invoked Article 4 in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The first invocation of Article 4 was in 2003, when Turkey sought discussion surrounding defensive assistance due to concerns about armed conflict in neighboring Iraq affecting its national security. This led to Operation Display Deterrence, a 65-day NATO operation to protect Turkey’s border with Iraq.
The article has also been threatened to be used before, without actual invocation.
What is NATO?
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization, or NATO, is a multinational defense alliance created in 1949 after World War II by the U.S., Canada and various European nations to provide collective security. Its initial goals included “deterring Soviet expansionism, forbidding the revival of nationalist militarism in Europe through a strong North American presence on the continent, and encouraging European political integration,” according to the NATO website.
Currently, NATO has 32 member countries. Poland joined NATO in 1999.