Consider the following countries:
- I.Austria
- II.Bulgaria
- III.Croatia
- IV.Serbia
- V.Sweden
- VI.North Macedonia
How many of the above are members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization?
Answer & explanation
Answer: (b) Only four
Bulgaria (2004), Croatia (2009), North Macedonia (2020) and Sweden (2024) are NATO members. Austria and Serbia are only NATO partners, not Allies, and both stress neutrality.
- ✗ I Austria is not on NATO's list of 32 Allies. The Austrian Foreign Ministry calls Austria a NATO partner, a member of the Partnership for Peace since 1995, and stresses its commitment to neutrality.
- ✓ II Bulgaria joined NATO in 2004, as NATO's member list shows.
- ✓ III Croatia became a member in 2009, as NATO's member list shows.
- ✗ IV Serbia is a Partnership for Peace partner since 2006 but does not seek membership; NATO says it respects Serbia's military neutrality.
- ✓ V Sweden joined NATO in 2024, as NATO's member list shows; NATO then had 32 members.
- ✓ VI North Macedonia joined NATO in 2020, as NATO's member list shows.
Remember · NATO has 32 Allies: Finland 2023 and Sweden 2024 the newest; North Macedonia 2020; Croatia 2009; Bulgaria 2004. Austria and Serbia are partners (Partnership for Peace), not members.
Sources
- NATO: Member countries ↗ “Albania 2009 Belgium 1949 Bulgaria 2004 Canada 1949 Croatia 2009 Czechia 1999 Denmark 1949 Estonia 2004 Finland 2023 France 1949 Germany 1955 … North Macedonia 2020 Norway 1949 Poland 1999 Portugal 1949 Romania 2004 Slovakia 2004 Slovenia 2004 Spain 1982 Sweden 2024”
- NATO: Relations with Serbia ↗ “NATO fully respects Serbia’s policy of military neutrality. Cooperation and dialogue have developed steadily since 2006, when the country joined the Partnership for Peace (PfP) programme”
- Austrian Federal Ministry for European and International Affairs (foreign government site): Security policy, Austria as a NATO partner ↗ · reference work “The Republic of Austria has been a member of the NATO Partnership for Peace ( PfP ) since 1995 … chief among them a clear commitment to Austrian neutrality.”
Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper I (2025, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 1 Oct 2026 (how we verify). ·