NORWAY AND POLISH EURO-ATLANTIC ASPIRATIONS IN THE YEARS 1989-1995

• Authors: Zysk B.
• Languages of publication: PL

Abstracts

EN

Alongside the involvement of the Alliance in out-of-area operations the integration of members of the former eastern bloc with NATO comprised one of the most important challenges facing NATO states during the early 1990s. From the Norwegian point of view, NATO in its old form was still a necessity. Despite the fact that the beginning the 1990s had produced radical transformations in neighbouring Russia, frequent disturbances on the Russian political scene indicated the frailty of the attained stabilisation and the need to take into consideration the possibility that 'all this could change'. The new tasks of the Alliance and the inclusion into it of former adversaries challenged Norway's supreme objective, i.e. the retention of a strong defensive pact and the maintenance of this state's position within NATO structures and defensive plans. Contrary to the oft-expressed opinion, Norway initially was not one of decisive supporters of expansion. The stand of the government and the political elites was characterised by considerable moderation and even scepticism. The attitude represented by Oslo did not evolve until the second half of 1994, under the impact of American involvement and the decision to inaugurate expansion. The initiative undertaken by Washington only several months after the establishment of Partnership for Peace took the Norwegian politicians by surprise, but did not encounter wider resistance. A universally held opinion claimed that the determination of American diplomacy had excluded the possibility of relegating the controversial expansion of security guarantees, so as to encompass Central-Eastern Europe, into a distant future. Now, expansion had become an actual perspective, and it became necessary to relegate to it whilst protecting Norwegian interests. The military and political deterioration of the Alliance ultimately appeared to be a sensible price to pay. The only alternative was the restriction of US military presence in Europe, crucial for Norwegian security, and the decline of American interest in the Alliance, conceived as a relic of a past epoch and incapable of adapting itself to the new, post-Cold War reality.

Keywords

EN

NORWAY AND POLISH EURO-ATLANTIC ASPIRATIONS; POLISH EURO-ATLANTIC ASPIRATIONS

Discipline

• HISTORY: HISTORY

• Publisher: Polska Akademia Nauk. Instytut Historii im. Tadeusza Manteuffla PAN w Warszawie
• Journal: Dzieje Najnowsze
• Year: 2007
• Issue: 4
• Pages: 215-233
• Document type: ARTICLE

Contributors

author

Zysk B.

• B. Zysk, Norwegian Institute for Defence Studies, Oslo, Norway

Identifiers

CEJSH db identifier

08PLAAAA05249949