NATO and Turkey

Speaker: Maj. Gen. (Retd.) Vinod Saighal, VSM author and Executive Director, Eco Monitors Society

 

Introductory Observations: Shri N.N. Vohra, President, IIC

 

At the end of World War II the Western allies decided to form the North Atlantic Treaty Pact (NATO) to counter the advance of the Soviet Union and its communist ideology. Stalin had quickly incorporated the Baltic Republics and Eastern Europe into the Soviet sphere. Turkey with the strongest army in Europe was the bulwark of the defences against the Soviet Union. Recently, however, strains have developed in the alliance. Turkey is now more inclined towards Russia. The break up with NATO whether imminent or not makes Turkey's support meaningless