NATO Partnerships and Expansions, 1963

A 1963 memorandum for the Secretary of State for External Affairs discussed the possibility of NATO developing informal relations with other regional defense organizations, namely the Central Treaty Organization (CENTO) which consisted of Iran, Iraq, Pakistan, Türkiye, and the United Kingdom as well as Southeast Asia Treaty Organization (SEATO). Collaboration with CENTO was first contemplated in 1957 but the Danish and Canadian Ministers “expressed misgivings.” In 1959 the Secretary-General of SEATO visited the heads of CENTO and NATO with the intention of establishing ties with the other organizations. The Canadians once again protested, fearing that “close relations with CENTO and SEATO might deepen the split between committed and uncommitted countries in Asia and the Middle East and reduce the opportunities for exercising Western influence in the latter.” They found themselves “isolated on the issue” as other NATO members believed the “psychological and practical value of cooperation outweigh any possible disadvantages.” Norman Robertson recommended that Canada put aside its apprehension and agree to the Council’s terms given its broad consensus [CDEX01054].

The proposed collaboration would require a free exchange of all intelligence rated as “Confidential” and lower, and would also mean the attendance of representatives of the other organizations to NATO exercises. A correspondence by NATO headquarters demonstrated that while many Member States were favorable to inviting SEATO and CENTO, they did not want their counterpart leaders to be aware that they were not receiving all NATO intelligence data for fear of stirring suspicion. There was also some concern about how to publicly announce the collaboration of CENTO and SEATO officials since NATO restricted invitations to their Member States, a precedent that was established and followed since Lebanon's request for observation in 1961 [CDEX01056].