Non-Aligned Movement

The **Non-Aligned Movement** (**NAM**) is an international organization (group of countries) who do not want to be officially **aligned** with or against any major power bloc (group of countries).  In 2024, the movement had 121 members and 27 observers. 

The group was started in Belgrade in 1961.  It was created by Yugoslavia's President, Josip Broz Tito, India's first Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, Egypt's second President, Gamal Abdel Nasser, Ghana's first president Kwame Nkrumah, and Indonesia's first President, Sukarno. All five leaders believed that developing countries should not help either the Western or Eastern blocs in the Cold War.  They also believed that developing countries should not be Capitalist or Communist, but should try to find a different way to help their people.

The *Havana Declaration of 1979* said that the purpose of the organization is to help countries keep their "the national independence, sovereignty, territorial integrity and security of non-aligned countries" in their "struggle against Imperialism, Colonialism, Neocolonialism, Racism, and all forms of foreign aggression, occupation, domination, interference or hegemony as well as against great power and bloc politics." This means that they wanted to govern their countries without the main capitalist powers nor the major socialist states telling them how.

The countries of the Non-Aligned Movement are nearly two-thirds of the United Nations's members and 55% of the world population.

## Secretaries-General
Between summits, the Non-Aligned Movement is run by the secretary-general elected at last summit meeting. As a considerable part of the movement's work is undertaken at the United Nations in New York, the chair country's ambassador to the UN is expected to devote time and effort to matters concerning the Non-Aligned Movement. The Coordinating Bureau, also based at the UN, is the main instrument for directing the work of the movement's task forces, committees and working groups.

## Members, observers and guests 
### Current members 
The following countries are members of the NAM, arranged by continent, showing their year of admission:
#  (1961)
#  (1964)
#  (1964)
#  (1961)
#  (1964)
#  (1964)
#  (1979)

#### Americas 
#  (2006)
#  (1983)
#  (1983)
#  (1981)
#  (1979)
#  (1971)
#  (1983)
#  (1961)
#  (2006)
#  (2000)
#  (1983)
#  (1979)
#  (1993)
#  (1970)
#  (2006)
#  (1995)
#  (1970)
#  (1979)
#  (1976)
#  (1973)
#  (2006)
#  (1983)
#  (2003)
#  (1983)
#  (1970)
#  (1989)

#### Asia 
# / (1961)
#  (1973)
#  (1973)
#  (1973)
#  (1993)
#  (1961)
#  (1961)
#  (1961)
#  (1979)
#  (1961)
#  (1964)
#  (1964)
#  (1964)
#  (1961)
#  (1970)
#  (1976)
#  (1993)
#  (1961)
#  (1961)
#  (1975)
#  (1973)
#  (1979)
#  (1976)
#  (1993)
#  (1973)
#  (1961)
#  (1970)
#  (1961)
#  (1964)
#  (1993)
#  (2003)
#  (1995)
#  (1970)
#  (1993)
#  (1976)
#  (1990)

#### Europe 
#  (2011)
#  (1998)

#### Oceania 
#  (2011)
#  (1993)
#  (1983)

### Former members 
#  (1961–1990)
#  (1970–1990)
#  (1973–2004)
#  (1973–1991)

### Observers 
The following countries and organizations have observer status:
# 
# 
# 
# 
# 

### Guests 
There is no permanent guest status, but often several non-member countries are represented as guests at conferences. In addition, a large number of organisations, both from within the UN system and from outside, are always invited as guests.

## Origins
The Non-Aligned movement was never established as a formal organization, but became the name to refer to the participants of the *Conference of Heads of State or Government of Non-Aligned Countries* first held in 1961. 
The term "non-alignment" itself was coined by Indian Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru during his speech in 1954 in Colombo, Sri Lanka. In this speech, Nehru described the five pillars to be used as a guide for Sino-Indian relations, which were first put forth by Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai. Called Panchsheel (five restraints), these principles would later serve as the basis of the Non-Aligned Movement. The five principles were:

* Mutual respect for each other's territorial integrity and sovereignty
* Mutual non-aggression
* Mutual non-interference in domestic affairs
* Equality and mutual benefit
* Peaceful co-existence

A significant milestone in the development of the Non-Aligned Movement was the 1955 Bandung Conference, a conference of Asian and African states hosted by Indonesian president Sukarno, who gave a significant contribution to promote this movement. The attending nations declared their desire not to become involved in the Cold War and adopted a "declaration on promotion of world peace and cooperation", which included Nehru's five principles. Six years after Bandung, an initiative of Yugoslav president Josip Broz Tito led to the first *Conference of Heads of State or Government of Non-Aligned Countries*, which was held in September 1961 in Belgrade. The term *non aligned movement* appears first in the fifth conference in 1976, where participating countries are denoted as *members of the movement*.

At the Lusaka Conference in September 1970, the member nations added as aims of the movement the peaceful resolution of disputes and the abstention from the big power military alliances and pacts. Another added aim was opposition to stationing of military bases in foreign countries.

The founding fathers of the Non-aligned movement were:  Sukarno of Indonesia, Jawaharlal Nehru of India, and Josip Broz Tito of Yugoslavia, Gamal Abdul Nasser of Egypt and Kwame Nkrumah of Ghana. Their actions were known as 'The Initiative of Five'.

## Organizational structure and membership
The movement stems from a desire not to be aligned within a geopolitical/military structure and therefore itself does not have a very strict organizational structure. The Summit Conference of Heads of State or Government of Non-Aligned States is the "highest decision making authority". The chairmanship rotates between countries and changes at every summit of heads of state or government to the country organizing the summit.  The movement places equal emphasis on disarmament. NAM's commitment to peace pre-dates its formal institutionalisation in 1961. The Brioni meeting between heads of governments of India, Egypt and Yugoslavia in 1956 recognized that there exists a vital link between struggle for peace and endeavours for disarmament.  African concerns about apartheid were linked with Arab-Asian concerns about Palestine but as in the past, cohesion remains a problem since the size of the organisation and the divergence of agendas and allegiances present the ongoing potential for fragmentation. While agreement on basic principles has been smooth, taking definitive action vis-à-vis particular international issues has been rare, with the movement preferring to assert its criticism or support rather than pass hard-line resolutions.  The movement continues to see a role for itself, as in its view, the world’s poorest nations remain exploited and marginalised, no longer by opposing superpowers, but rather in a uni-polar world, and it is Western hegemony and neo-colonialism that the movement has really re-aligned itself against. It opposes foreign occupation, interference in internal affairs, and aggressive unilateral measures, but it has also shifted to focus on the socio-economic challenges facing member states, especially the inequalities manifested by globalisation and the implications of neo-liberal policies. The Non-Aligned Movement has identified economic underdevelopment, poverty, and social injustices as growing threats to peace and security.

## Current activities and positions
;Criticism of US policy

In recent years the US has become a target of the organisation. The US invasion of Iraq and the War on Terrorism, its attempts to stifle Iran and North Korea's nuclear plans, and its other actions have been denounced as human rights violations and attempts to run roughshod over the sovereignty of smaller nations.  The movement’s leaders have also criticised the American control over the United Nations and other international structures.

;Self-determination of Puerto Rico

Since 1961, the group have supported the discussion of the case of Puerto Rico's self-determination before the United Nations. A resolution on the matter will be proposed on the XV Summit by the Hostosian National Independence Movement.

;Self-determination of Western Sahara

Since 1973, the group have supported the discussion of the case of Western Sahara's self-determination before the United Nations. The Non-Aligned Movement reaffirmed in its last meeting (Sharm El Sheikh 2009) the support to the Self-determination of the Sahrawi people by choosing between any valid option, welcomed the direct conversations between the parts, and remembered the responsibility of the United Nations on the Sahrawi issue.

;Sustainable development

The movement is publicly committed to the tenets of sustainable development and the attainment of the Millennium Development Goals, but it believes that the international community has not created conditions conducive to development and has infringed upon the right to sovereign development by each member state. Issues such as globalisation, the debt burden, unfair trade practices, the decline in foreign aid, donor conditionalities, and the lack of democracy in international financial decision-making are cited as factors inhibiting development.

;Reforms of the UN

The Non-Aligned Movement has been quite outspoken in its criticism of current UN structures and power dynamics, mostly in how the organisation has been utilised by powerful states in ways that violate the movement’s principles. It has made a number of recommendations that would strengthen the representation and power of ‘non-aligned’ states. The proposed reforms are also aimed at improving the transparency and democracy of UN decision-making. The UN Security Council is the element considered the most distorted, undemocratic, and in need of reshaping.

;South-south cooperation

Lately the Non-Aligned Movement has collaborated with other organisations of the developing world, primarily the Group of 77, forming a number of joint committees and releasing statements and document representing the shared interests of both groups. This dialogue and cooperation can be taken as an effort to increase the global awareness about the organisation and bolster its political clout.

;Cultural diversity and human rights

The movement accepts the universality of human rights and social justice, but fiercely resists cultural homogenisation. In line with its views on sovereignty, the organisation appeals for the protection of cultural diversity, and the tolerance of the religious, socio-cultural, and historical particularities that define human rights in a specific region.

;Working groups, task forces, committees

*High-Level Working Group for the Restructuring of the United Nations
*Working Group on Human Rights
*Working Group on Peace-Keeping Operations
*Working Group on Disarmament
*Committee on Palestine
*Task Force on Somalia
*Non-Aligned Security Caucus
*Standing Ministerial Committee for Economic Cooperation
*Joint Coordinating Committee (chaired by Chairman of G-77 and Chairman of NAM)

## Summits
The conference of Heads of State or Government of the Non-Alligned Countries, often referred to as Non-Alligned Movement Summit is the main meeting within the movement and are held every few years:
#  Belgrade, September 1–6, 1961
#  Cairo, October 5–10, 1964
#  Lusaka, September 8–10, 1970
#  Algiers, September 5–9, 1973
#  Colombo, August 16–19, 1976
#  Havana, September 3–9, 1979
#  New Delhi (originally planned for Baghdad), March 7–12, 1983
#  Harare, September 1–6, 1986
#  Belgrade, September 4–7, 1989
#  Jakarta, September 1–6, 1992
#  Cartagena de Indias, October 18–20, 1995
#  Durban, September 2–3, 1998
#  Kuala Lumpur, February 20–25, 2003
#  Havana, September 15–16, 2006
#  Sharm El Sheikh, July 11–16, 2009
#  Isfahan, August 26–31, 2012
#  Porlamar, September 13–18, 2016
#  Baku, October 25–26, 2019

A *ministerial meeting* takes place in between the conferences of Heads of State and Government in a country which is not the chair of the movement. The 2011 meeting is on Bali, Indonesia in May 2011.

## References
## Related pages
* Third World

## Other websites 
*
* Official Site: 15th Summit  — Fifteenth Non Aligned Movement Summit, (Sharm el Sheikh July 11–16, 2009)
* Official Site: 14th Summit  — Fourteenth Non Aligned Movement Summit, (Havana, September 11–16, 2006)
* Non-Aligned Movement  — Resource site
* International Institute for Non-Aligned Studies  — International Organization for Non-Aligned Movement
* The Cold War International History Project's Document Collection on the NAM