Western Bloc
(Redirected from
Western bloc
)
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First World: Countries aligned with the Western Bloc (i.e., NATO and allies), led by the United States
Second World: Countries aligned with the Eastern Bloc (i.e., Warsaw Pact, China, and allies), led by the Soviet Union
The Western Bloc is an informal, collective term for countries that were officially allied with the
People's Republic of China. The name "Western Bloc" emerged in response to and as the antithesis of its communist counterpart, the Eastern Bloc. Throughout the Cold War, the governments and the Western media were more inclined to refer to themselves as the "Free World" or the "First World", whereas the Eastern Bloc was often referred to as the "Communist World" or less commonly the "Second World
".
1947–1991 Western Bloc associations
NATO
Belgium*
Canada*
Denmark*
France*
West Germany (1955–1990)
Greece (from 1952)
Iceland*
Italy*
Luxembourg*
Netherlands*
Norway*
Portugal*
Spain (from 1982)
Turkey (from 1952)
United Kingdom*
United States*
* Indicates founding member state
Five Eyes
ANZUS
Compact of Free Association
METO, Baghdad Pact, CENTO (until 1979)
Pahlavi Iran (until 1979)
Kingdom of Iraq (until 1958)
Pakistan (until 1979)- Turkey (until 1979)
- United Kingdom (until 1979)
Rio Treaty
Argentina
Bahamas (from 1982)
Bolivia (until 2005)
Brazil
Chile
Colombia
Costa Rica
Republic of Cuba (1902–1959) (until 1959)
Dominican Republic (until 1990)
Ecuador (until 2012)
El Salvador
Guatemala
Honduras
Mexico
Nicaragua (until 1979)
Panama
Paraguay
Peru
Trinidad and Tobago (from 1967)- United States
Uruguay
Venezuela (until 1999, rejoined 2019 by Juan Guaidó)
SEATO
Australia
Kingdom of Cambodia (1953–1970) (until 1956)
Khmer Republic (1970–1975)
- France
Kingdom of Laos (until 1975)
New Zealand- Pakistan (until 1973)
Philippines
South Vietnam (until 1975)
Thailand- United Kingdom
- United States
Greater Middle Eastern Partners
Islamic Republic of Afghanistan (2001–2021)
Bahrain
Egypt (from 1979)- Pahlavi Iran (until 1979)
Ba'athist Iraq (until 1990)
Israel
Jordan
Kuwait
Lebanon
Libya (before 1969, from 2011)
Morocco
Oman
Qatar
Saudi Arabia
Syrian opposition
Tunisia- Turkey (until 2009)
United Arab Emirates
Yemen (Hadi government)
Yemen Arab Republic (1962–1990)
Sub-Saharan African Partners
Ethiopian Empire (before 1974)
Somalia (from 1977)
South Africa
Sudan (1971-1985, 2019–2021)
Zaire
Northeast Asian, South Asian, Southeast Asian, and Oceanian Partners
Japan
South Korea
Taiwan- Australia
- New Zealand
India- Pakistan
Bhutan
Indonesia- Philippines
- Thailand
Malaysia
Singapore
Brunei (from 1984)
Vietnam (from 1995)
Post-1991 Western-aligned associations
NATO
Albania (from 2009)- Belgium*
Bulgaria (from 2004)- Canada*
Croatia (from 2009)
Czech Republic (from 1999)- Denmark*
Estonia (from 2004)
Finland (from 2023)- France*
- Germany*
- Greece*
Hungary (from 1999)- Iceland*
- Italy*
Latvia (from 2004)
Lithuania (from 2004)- Luxembourg*
Montenegro (from 2017)- Netherlands*
North Macedonia (from 2020)- Norway*
Poland (from 1999)- Portugal*
Romania (from 2004)
Slovakia (from 2004)
Slovenia (from 2004)- Spain*
Sweden (from 2024)- Turkey*
- United Kingdom*
- United States*
* Indicates pre-1991 member state
Major non-NATO ally (MNNA)
- Australia (from 1987)
- Egypt (from 1987)
- Israel (from 1987)
- Japan (from 1987)
- South Korea (from 1987)
- Jordan (from 1996)
- New Zealand (from 1997)
- Argentina (from 1998)
- Bahrain (from 2002)
- Philippines (from 2003)
- Thailand (from 2003)
- Republic of China (Taiwan) (de facto) (from 2003)
- Kuwait (from 2004)
- Morocco (from 2004)
- Pakistan (from 2004)
- Islamic Republic of Afghanistan (2012–2021)
- Tunisia (from 2015)
- Brazil (from 2019)
- Colombia (from 2022)
- Qatar (from 2022)
Greater Middle Eastern Partners
Northeast Asian, South Asian, Southeast Asian, and Oceanian Partners
Inter-American Partners
Quadrilateral Security Dialogue
Others
Azerbaijan
Austria
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Cyprus
Georgia
Ireland
Kosovo
Malta
Moldova
Ukraine (from 2014)
See also
Notes
Sources
- Matloff, Maurice. Makers of Modern Strategy. Ed. Peter Paret. Princeton: Princeton UP, 1971. 702.
- Kissinger, Henry. Diplomacy. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1994. 447,454.
- Lewkowicz, Nicolas. The United States, the Soviet Union and the Geopolitical Implications of the Origins of the Cold War New York and London: Anthem Press, 2018.