An Eastern European's take on NATO's largest expansion in history

As a Princeton student and as a Romanian, I would like to share with you some of my thoughts about today's NATO enlargement. As announced today by president Bush at the Prague summit, NATO has just invited seven countries: Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia to join the alliance.

This decision has been received with great joy by people of these seven countries and with skepticism by many western politicians, philosophers and journalists. Even before the expansion it was unclear what the mission and objectives of NATO would be, given the collapse of the Soviet bloc. One inevitably wonders if the present move to include countries that are economically and militarily under-prepared might further weaken the alliance. It is useful and understandable that we have constructive debates around this topic. It is clear that the mission of NATO has to change fundamentally to take into account the political developments around the world, the evolving role of Russia in the new "world order," and the threat of terrorism around the globe.

However, I wanted at this point in time to share with you the joy that, as an Eastern European acquainted with some of the horrors of communism and the long political isolation of Romania, deeply feel.

What I am celebrating today is the end of a piece of bad history and the beginning of another, which I hope will be much better than the past fifty years. For many people home, Nov. 22 2002 represents the official end of the communist era, a statement that a return to communism is unthinkable and that a neighboring authoritarian regime will not be allowed to step in and impose its political will and power on us again. This scenario is unlikely right now, but we must not forget the painful experience of these countries under the Soviet occupation and the involvement of the Soviet Union in establishing authoritarian regimes in these countries.

The actual political functionality of a vast NATO alliance can be questioned. However, even skeptics must acknowledge the extraordinary symbolic value of this union. The collective memory of repression under communism and (historically justified) apprehension of Russia is very strong in these countries. The memory of the Cold War era will take a long time to disappear. The rebuilding of bridges and the reemergence of full trust in relationships between Eastern and Central Europe and Russia on one hand and Russia and the Western World on the other is a lengthy process which has just started. The duration of this process will depend on the political and economic advances in Eastern and Central Europe and Russia. The new role given to Russia in NATO might accelerate the healing process and force the world to think of Russia in new ways.

Inviting these seven countries to be part of NATO in some ways pays tribute to the painful collective memory of these countries, and to those Eastern and Central Europeans who stood up against the authoritarian political regimes imposed on them. It is a tribute to the millions of people who suffered under communism and the conclusion of long standing dreams of most intellectuals in these countries.

Importantly, this process of integration will force Eastern and Central European countries to align themselves politically and economically to Western standards and it will isolate any country leaders attempting breaches to democracy. Given the turbulent history of the region, acceptance into NATO is seen by Eastern Europeans as a guarantee of security, democracy, political stability and self-determination. Last but not least, it is a political step towards a much broader European integration, which will most likely be followed by gradual enlargement of the European Union and by economic integration across Europe.

On an even broader scale, this expansion is a clear sign that we, Central and Eastern Europeans, have been accepted as part of the civilized world and of a global community, that we have finally stepped out of our fifty year isolation into a new century of hope and mutual trust. Irina Marinov is a grad student in the Geosciences. You can reach her at imarinov@princeton.edu.