Rasi: Article 5 of North Atlantic Treaty Not Automatic Order to Go to War

Bratislava, 21 September (TASR) - Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty is not an automatic order to go to war and leaves each state room to decide what form of assistance to provide; however, its core principle must remain intact: an attack against one ally is considered an attack against all, House Chair Richard Rasi (Voice-SD) has posted social media to mark the International Day of Peace. "If we were to label this commitment as merely formal or unenforceable, we would also have to admit that our allies could one day take the same approach towards us," noted Rasi. Rasi said that peace cannot depend solely on a written threat of retaliation. Above all, it rests on dialogue, respect for international law and credible solidarity that deters aggression before it occurs. "Our goal should not be the invocation of Article 5, but to pursue a responsible policy that ensures it never needs to be invoked," stated the House chair. According to Rasi, peace requires restraint, diplomacy and efforts to prevent escalation. He therefore views President Peter Pellegrini's call for prudence as appropriate. "Restraint, however, must not mean ambiguity when it comes to our commitments to our allies," he said. Premier Robert Fico (Smer-SD) last week expressed his concerns about how the conflict in Ukraine is evolving, saying that the situation has never been as serious and tense in terms of the possibility of a pan-European military conflict as it is now. In the context of Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty, according to which an armed attack against one NATO member is considered to be an attack against all members, Fico also said that he doesn't want Slovakia to become involved in any war. Reacting to this, Pellegrini said that he believes that great care should be taken when making such statements. He said that he tries to view Fico's claims as an appeal to avoid provoking Russia through certain actions, in order to prevent an attack on any partner in the Alliance so that Slovakia wouldn't have to deploy troops under Article 5. According to him, no other interpretation is acceptable. Czech President Petr Pavel also considers Fico's remarks serious. ko/mcs