NATO Summit in Germany and France on April 3-4

31 March 2009

President Harry S. Truman observing the signing of the North Atlantic Treaty by Secretary of State Dean Acheson. Courtesy: NATO Photos.

The 60th Anniversary NATO Summit of Heads of State and Government will be held on 3–4 April 2009 in Baden-Baden and Kehl, Germany, and in Strasbourg, France.  To celebrate this memorable occasion, the U.S. Mission to NATO launched a redesigned website http://nato.usmission.gov/ which highlights news, information, and themes for the Summit.  Among other resources, the website includes the newly released 8-minute video on NATO in today’s world and a slideshow chronology of 60 years of U.S. engagement in NATO.  “Six colours,”  a DVD featuring a series of short videos illustrating the impact of NATO activities on the daily lives of citizens will be launched by NATO in early April. Please follow this link  to learn more about NATO’s history and 60th Anniversary celebrations. 

The Summit meetings this year will be chaired by the NATO Secretary General, Jaap de Hoop Scheffer. The President of the French Republic, Mr Nicolas Sarkozy, and the Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany, Mrs Angela Merkel, will host the meetings.  As part of NATO’s 21st century communications effort, NATO released numerous interactive resources available to the general public.  Please click here to watch three short videos about NATO. The new 30-minute documentary on Afghanistan:  "The Road to Stability” by former BBC journalist Paul Anderson will be available on NATO’s website and the NATO Review magazine has a special 60th Anniversary edition, including a great slideshow of historical photos.   

Over the past 60 years, NATO’s missions have diversified. “Six Colours” is a series of short videos illustrating the impact of NATO activities on the daily lives of citizens. Through the stories of men and women from different backgrounds, these videos show various facets of the Alliance and highlight the added value that NATO provides when it comes to the security of citizens and their environment.  More information on “Six Colours” is available here.