NATO stands for the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. It was established in 1949 and has 28 countries in the pact. NATO was created to protect other countries from the Soviet Union taking control over their country. It consists of Belgium, Great Britain, Italy, Iceland, Luxembourg, United States, Canada, Netherlands, Denmark, Norway, and Portugal. West Germany and Greece joined in 1955. General Dwight D. Eisenhower was appointed as the first allied commander of NATO. In today's world NATO commanders meet and talk about security issues. Many people think NATO is a waste of time and government money.