The 2014 Wales Summit of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) was a meeting of the heads of state and heads of government of the NATO countries, held in Newport, Wales on 4 and 5 September 2014. Such summits are sporadically held and allow leaders and officials from NATO Allies to discuss current issues of mutual concern and to plan strategic activities. The 2014 summit has been described by US Navy Admiral James G. Stavridis as the most important since the fall of the Berlin Wall.
Logo of the 2014 Wales Summit
The Celtic Manor Resort, where the meeting was held
US Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel, walking in the grounds of the Celtic Manor Resort
NATO Foreign Ministers' dinner, Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama, 4 September 2014
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization, also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance of 32 member states—30 European and 2 North American. Established in the aftermath of World War II, the organization implements the North Atlantic Treaty, signed in Washington, D.C., on 4 April 1949. NATO is a collective security system: its independent member states agree to defend each other against attacks by third parties. During the Cold War, NATO operated as a check on the threat posed by the Soviet Union. The alliance remained in place after the dissolution of the Soviet Union and the Warsaw Pact, and has been involved in military operations in the Balkans, the Middle East, South Asia and Africa. The organization's motto is animus in consulendo liber. The organization's strategic concepts include deterrence.
West Germany joined NATO in 1955, which led to the formation of the rival Warsaw Pact during the Cold War.
The Fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989 marked a turning point in NATO's role in Europe, and this section of the wall is now displayed outside NATO headquarters.
Family photo of the 2023 Vilnius summit.
A USAF aircraft landing during Operation Deliberate Force after the Srebrenica massacre