METO (The Middle Eastern Treaty Organisation) was an alliance of countries along the USSR's southern border dedicated to fighting any Soviet interference in the region. Despite the threat still existing in 1979 and the Cold War showing no signs of slowing down why did it dissolve? To find out watch this short and simple animated history documentary.

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METO, the Middle East's version of NATO, no longer exists.

Founded by Turkey and Iraq, it existed for over 24 years before it dissolved in the late 1970s.

This alliance was similar to NATO in that its primary purpose was

to contain Soviet and communist expansion in the region.

However, given that the alliance's primary objective hadn't been achieved by the late 1970s, why did METO collapse?

So, in early 1955, Turkey and the Kingdom of Iraq signed a defence agreement to increase cooperation in case of unwanted foreign intervention.

This was aimed at the USSR, which was funding Republican groups in Iraq and strongly disliked Turkey's control over the Bosporus.

This agreement was known unofficially as the Baghdad Pact given that that's where its headquarters were.

And a few months later a new member joined, the United Kingdom.

Now obviously the UK joining a Middle Eastern alliance seems a bit odd, but the alliance was never limited to just nations in the region.

METO was always open to any country which had an interest in resisting the expansion of communism in the region.

Britain still held territories there and didn't want decolonisation to mean the rise of communism.

This also meant that membership was open to the United States, which declined.

The US knew that if it joined as a full member, the alliance would be painted as little more than an extension of American power, and so it opted to simply be an observer to the treaty.

That said, Britain's involvement did mean that many neighbouring nations wanted nothing to do with the alliance.

The most notable of these was Egypt, which in 1956 was invaded by Britain and so naturally opposed the alliance entirely.

And this invasion meant that very few neighbouring states saw Meto favorably.

Many were concerned that Israel would be allowed to join or that they'd be forced to house Turkish or British troops.

And given that many Middle Eastern nations had spent a long time trying to get rid of the British or the Turkish, it just sounded like a new form of imperialism.

Shortly after Britain joined METO, Pakistan and Iran did too.

The plan then was to expand until most of the Arab League had joined, but this never happened.

Well, the first problem was that integration was never that deep.

Besides Britain and Turkey sidelining some troops in case of conflict with the USSR in the region, there wasn't a unified structure or much military cooperation.

The second problem was that a mere 3 years after joining, Iraq had a coup.

Its monarchy was overthrown and the new government withdrew from the treaty.

Thus Ankara became the headquarters of the alliance which was renamed to Cento.

Iraq soon worked with the USSR, Egypt and Syria to pressure other nations not to join the treaty which worked.

Furthermore, when Pakistan and India started shooting at each other in

A request which was refused, which meant that Pakistan's place in the alliance was largely irrelevant.

After this, the alliance was unofficially dead, but it wasn't until the 1970s that it truly fell apart.

After Turkey invaded Cyprus in 1974, Britain said it would no longer provide troops or weapons to the rest of the alliance.

And 5 years later, after the Shah was overthrown, the new Iranian government withdrew, and Pakistan did the same the day after to keep relations with Tehran's new government positive.

And shortly after that, Britain and Turkey opted to dissolve the alliance, thereby ending the Middle East's version of NATO.

Lightfoot, Marvin Casale, Captain Seidel, Camoon Yoon, Winston K.

Wood, Miss Izzet, Boogalee Woogalee, Maggie Paskowski, The McWhopper, Gustav Swan, Calling Dr.

Howard, Copper Tone, Shuenin, Spinning 3 Plates, Words About Books Podcast, Jim Strumberg, Words About Books Podcast, and Charles I.


Speaker 0: METO, the Middle East's version of NATO, no longer exists. Founded by Turkey and Iraq, it existed for over 24 years before it dissolved in the late 1970s. This alliance was similar to NATO in that its primary purpose was

Speaker 1: to contain Soviet and communist expansion in the region. However, given that the alliance's primary objective hadn't been achieved by the late 1970s, why did METO collapse? So, in early 1955, Turkey and the Kingdom of Iraq signed a defence agreement to increase cooperation in case of unwanted foreign intervention. This was aimed at the USSR, which was funding Republican groups in Iraq and strongly disliked Turkey's control over the Bosporus. This agreement was known unofficially as the Baghdad Pact given that that's where its headquarters were.

And a few months later a new member joined, the United Kingdom. Now obviously the UK joining a Middle Eastern alliance seems a bit odd, but the alliance was never limited to just nations in the region. METO was always open to any country which had an interest in resisting the expansion of communism in the region. Britain still held territories there and didn't want decolonisation to mean the rise of communism. This also meant that membership was open to the United States, which declined.

The US knew that if it joined as a full member, the alliance would be painted as little more than an extension of American power, and so it opted to simply be an observer to the treaty. That said, Britain's involvement did mean that many neighbouring nations wanted nothing to do with the alliance. The most notable of these was Egypt, which in 1956 was invaded by Britain and so naturally opposed the alliance entirely. And this invasion meant that very few neighbouring states saw Meto favorably. Many were concerned that Israel would be allowed to join or that they'd be forced to house Turkish or British troops.

And given that many Middle Eastern nations had spent a long time trying to get rid of the British or the Turkish, it just sounded like a new form of imperialism. Shortly after Britain joined METO, Pakistan and Iran did too. The plan then was to expand until most of the Arab League had joined, but this never happened. So why? Well, the first problem was that integration was never that deep.

Besides Britain and Turkey sidelining some troops in case of conflict with the USSR in the region, there wasn't a unified structure or much military cooperation. The second problem was that a mere 3 years after joining, Iraq had a coup. Its monarchy was overthrown and the new government withdrew from the treaty. Thus Ankara became the headquarters of the alliance which was renamed to Cento. Iraq soon worked with the USSR, Egypt and Syria to pressure other nations not to join the treaty which worked.

Furthermore, when Pakistan and India started shooting at each other in

Speaker 0: 1965,

Speaker 1: Pakistan invoked the alliance to help. A request which was refused, which meant that Pakistan's place in the alliance was largely irrelevant. After this, the alliance was unofficially dead, but it wasn't until the 1970s that it truly fell apart. After Turkey invaded Cyprus in 1974, Britain said it would no longer provide troops or weapons to the rest of the alliance. And 5 years later, after the Shah was overthrown, the new Iranian government withdrew, and Pakistan did the same the day after to keep relations with Tehran's new government positive.

And shortly after that, Britain and Turkey opted to dissolve the alliance, thereby ending the Middle East's version of NATO. Lightfoot, Marvin Casale, Captain Seidel, Camoon Yoon, Winston K. Wood, Miss Izzet, Boogalee Woogalee, Maggie Paskowski, The McWhopper, Gustav Swan, Calling Dr. Howard, Dr. Fine, Dr.

Howard, Copper Tone, Shuenin, Spinning 3 Plates, Words About Books Podcast, Jim Strumberg, Words About Books Podcast, and Charles I.

See all History Matters transcripts on Youtube

Why did the Middle East's version of NATO Fail? (Short Animated Documentary)