How NATO Expanded Eastwards [Infographic]

While the tensions between Russia and its Western neighbor are complex and long-standing, one issue at the heart of the problem has been Ukraine’s declared aspiration to join NATO, the European-North American military alliance. While the country’s bid to join dates back as far as 2008 and is not expected to be honored anytime soon, the greater context of the treaty’s expansion—from 12 founding members in 1949 to currently 30 predominantly European countries—charts an eastwards course that has been interpreted as an affront by Vladimir Putin for a long time. In December, the Russian president last blasted the organization at his annual end-of-year press conference. “Any further NATO movement to the east is unacceptable", Putin was quoted as saying. His demand of a formal ban of NATO expansions is not expected to be heeded, however. Putin has repeatedly said that NATO&eastwards expansion was breaking a promise made by Western powers after the dissolution of the Soviet Union. Yet, even Mikhail Gorbachev, who partook in the talks as the last Soviet leader, has said that no such promise was ever made. Meanwhile, NATO’s declared open door policy included in its founding treaty will continue to make membership an option for sovereign nations – post-Soviet or not – despite the risky consequences. The one that got away The Soviet Union might be long gone, but Russia has continued to view Ukraine as an important part of its sphere of influence. Like Belarus, Ukraine does not only...