According to the Associated Press report on April 19, Argentina formally applied to join NATO as a “global partner” country on Thursday (18th). At the same time, Argentina’s government is seeking to improve relations with Western countries to attract investment.
According to reports, the application was made during talks between NATO Deputy Secretary-General Mircea Geoană and visiting Argentine Defense Minister Luis Petri in Brussels. Geoană said he welcomed Argentina’s application to become a NATO “global partner” country. Argentina said becoming a NATO “global partner” country will give Argentina access to advanced technology, security systems and training.
In a post on the social media platform X, Petri shared a photo of his meeting with Geoană and said that he had submitted a letter of intent to Geoană expressing Argentina’s intention to apply to become a NATO “global partner” country, according to Russia Today TV (RT). He also said that he would continue to work to restore ties and “modernize and train” the military in accordance with NATO standards.
The Associated Press stated that becoming a NATO “global partner” country requires consensus among all 32 NATO member states. Relations between Argentina and Britain, a major NATO member, have been strained since a 1982 war between Argentina and Britain over the disputed sovereignty of the Malvinas Islands (called the Falkland Islands in Britain) in the South Atlantic.
The Associated Press mentioned that other NATO “global partner” countries include Afghanistan, Australia, Iraq, Japan, South Korea, Mongolia, New Zealand, Pakistan and Colombia. Currently, Colombia is NATO’s only “partner” country in Latin America. According to the report, granting a country the status of a “global partner” does not mean that NATO allies will come to the aid of the country when it is attacked. This commitment to collective defense in NATO’s Article 5 is limited to formal members of the alliance.