What states have most recently joined NATO and why?
The NATO most recently joined members (2004) are Bulgaria, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. As the others just before (Hungary, Poland and Czech Republic in 1999, East-Germany in 1990) these countries first of all seek the integration in “western” structures as a part of their way into the integration in the “west” such as the European Union. Another, discussable reason is to make clear steps away from their history as part of the eastern block controlled by the Sovietunion. All of the countries mentioned above were either part of the Sovietunion or member of the Warsaw pact, the “arch enemy” of the NATO. Being members of the NATO therefore means to be protected falling back into this history of being controlled in all their countries matters by the strongest European military force, for the countries of the Baltics (Estonia, Lithuania and Latvia) and even more means to be protected becoming part of any Russian controlled sphere again as they were States of t
