Partnership for Peace

NATO has something something called Partnership for Peace (PfP).  It's a bilateral cooperation programme between NATO and Euro-Atlantic partner countries that lets partners build up an individual relationship with NATO.  PfP started in 1994 as a way to build security relationships between NATO and non-NATO countries.  Participating countries choose their own priorities for cooperation and the both the level and pace of progress.

The programme allowed NATO to reach out to former Warsaw Pact and Soviet Republics following the end of the Cold War.  The programme allows countries to build closer relationships with NATO without actually becoming a NATO member.  It's important to remember that the PfP programme has nothing to do with NATO's article 5 which says that an attack on one NATO country is an attack on all.  So while Ukraine is a PfP member it is not a member of NATO.  

Here's the list of when countries joined the PfP programme.  Many went on to officially join NATO later on.  

Romania - 26.01.1994

Lithuania - 27.01.1994

Poland - 02.02.1994

Estonia - 03.02.1994

Hungary - 08.02.1994

Ukraine - 08.02.1994

Slovakia - 09.02.1994

Bulgaria - 14.02.1994

Latvia - 14.02.1994

Albania - 23.02.1994

Czechia - 10.03.1994

Moldova - 16.03.1994

Georgia - 23.03.1994

Slovenia - 30.03.1994

Finland - 09.05.1994

Sweden - 09.05.1994

Azerbaijan - 04.05.1994

Turkmenistan - 10.05.1994

Kazakhstan - 27.05.1994

Russia - 22.06.1994

Armenia  05.10.1994

Uzbekistan - 13.07.1994

Belarus - 11.01.1995

Austria - 10.02.1995

Malta - 26.04.1995

Macedonia - 15.11.1995

Switzerland - 11.12.1996

Ireland - 01.12.1999

Croatia - 25.05.2000

Tajikistan - 20.02.2002

Bosnia and Herzegovina - 14.12.2006

Montenegro - 14.12.2006

Serbia - 14.12.2006

In 1999, Czechland, Hungary, and Poland became the first three PfP countries to join NATO.

In 2004, NATO saw its largest expansion when seven PfP countries joined - Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Slovakia, and Slovenia.

Malta joined the programme in 1995 but left in 1996 and rejoined in 2008.

In 2009 - Albania and Croatia joined NATO.  Montenegro joined NATO in 2017 and North Macedonia joined in 2020 as the 30th NATO member.

In 2014, when Russia first invaded Ukraine, NATO suspended practical cooperation with Russia.  It's hard to picture Russia as a Partnership for Peace member considering it invaded Ukraine to keep it from joining NATO in the future.  But by doing do, I don't think it will be long until Finland and Sweden decide to join NATO.

Traditionally neutral countries such as Austria, Finland, Sweden, and Switzerland are all PfP members.  For Austria, the programme allows for cooperation with NATO without joining because under the country's constitution, Austria is prohibited from entering into military alliances and no foreign military bases may be on Austrian territory.  

Andorra, Liechtenstein, Monaco, San Marino, and Vatican City are all neutral micro states that are surrounded by NATO members.  They are all a part of the OSCE but they do not participate the PfP programme.

Cyprus is the only EU member that isn't a member of either NATO or the PfP programme. Kyrgyzstan is the only former Soviet republic that didn't join the PfP programme.  It did join the CSTA with Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Russia, and Tajikistan.

Update: 4 April 2023 - Finland became the 31st member of NATO.

Emergency Numbers

In the USA, if you need to make an emergency call for the police, fire department or an ambulance you dial 911.  In Europe, each country has their own emergency numbers.  For example, in Czechland you call:

150 for fires, natural disasters, accidents and emergencies
155 for health problems, injuries or accidents requiring medical attention
156 for the municipal police
158 for disturbances of public order and safety, traffic accidents or to report a crime

And that's just for Czechland.  To get an ambulance in Spain you dial 061, in Austria it is 144, in Italy it is 118, in Croatia it is 94, in Hungary the number is 104, while both the UK and Ireland use 999.  The list of numbers goes on and on. 

It can be a real problem if you don't know the emergency number in the country you're visiting.  So the European Union came up with the 112 number.  Aside from the local numbers, anyone in any EU country can dial 112 for any emergency - police, fire, ambulance.  112 even works in some non-EU countries such as Andorra, San Marino, Liechtenstein, Monaco, Vatican City, Iceland, Macedonia, and Serbia.

112 is a free call from either land line or mobile phones and can be used even without a SIM card.  The 112 number is awesome because the operators are prepared to dispatch calls in foreign languages.  So no need to speak Czech if you need the police.

Here's short video I found out on YouTube about the 112 emergency number.

 

© European Commission

Andorran Post Offices

I send six postcards back to the USA every time I go someplace.  So I always have to figure out the local postal situation when I go someplace new.  Well Andorra was a bit unusual because there is no Andorran post office.

Since Andorra has joint heads of state the country also has two postal systems.  La Poste is the French post office and Correos is the Spanish post office.  Each postal authority issues its own Andorran stamps for international mail.

You first have to decide if you want your mail processed in France or Spain.  Once you decide, you need to go to the appropriate office and purchase Andorran stamps.  When you drop your mail in to a post box you have to be sure to use the correct one.  Spain won't process letters with French Andorran stamps and France won't process letters with Spanish Andorran stamps.

Once the mail is collected it is sent off to either France or Spain for processing.  I bought stamps at La Poste so my postcards will all arrive with French postmarks.

Until 2009, domestic mail within Andorra was free so no stamp was needed.  Now locals have to purchase either French or Spanish stamps too.

Ordino, Andorra

Not far from Andorra la Vella is the small village of Ordino.  It is the main city of the largest, and least populated, parish in Andorra.

Ordino lies at the foot slopes of Mt Casamanya.  The village has around 3,100 residents.

It is a very quiet little town and a nice place to just walk around and relax.


The main sights are the postal museum and the Sant Corneli and Sant Cebrià church and bell tower.  The church was built between the 16th and 18th centuries.

Andorra la Vella, Andorra

Andorra la Vella is the capital of Andorra.  The capital is located high in the east Pyrenees Mountains between France and Spain.  Andorra la Vella is the highest capital city in Europe with an elevation of 1,023 meters (3,356 feet).



From Barcelona it takes +3 hours on a bus to go north the 202 km (125.5 miles).

The capital only has +22,500 residents but with all of the surrounding villages the local population is +40,000.  The main industry is tourism – especially when it comes to skiing, and shopping.

Andorra la Vella has been the country's main city since 1278 and the old town has many historic streets and buildings from this time. 

The Casa de la Vall was built in 1580 as a fortified house and has been the house of parliament since 1702.

The Església de Sant Esteve (St. Stephen) church was built in the 11th century.

The Gran Valira is the country's biggest river and flows through the capital.

There are lots of very high end shops but lots of high end prices to match.  Most of the shops closed for a few hours for afternoon siestas.  To me, it's kind of odd for shops to close in a place that is known for it's shopping but, oh well.  I wasn't really there to do a bunch of shopping anyway.

Nearby is Caldea, which at 6,000 sq meters (~64,600 sq ft), is Europe's largest spa.  It would have been great to check out the spa but sadly there just wasn't enough time for it in our quick day trip.

Principality of Andorra

The Principality of Andorra is a tiny landlocked country in the Pyrenees.  It is nestled between Spain and France.  It is Europe's 6th smallest country; about 2.5 times the size of Washington, DC.  Andorra's population is around 84,000.


The capital city is Andorra la Vella and, at an elevation of 1,023 meters (3,356 feet), it is the highest capital city in Europe.

The country is a parliamentary co-principality – ruled by the Bishop of Urgell (Catalonia, Spain) and the President of France.  It's kind of odd to me that Andorrans don't vote in French elections but the French President gets to be one of its two princes.

The Principality of Andorra was formed in 1278.  In 1993, the political system was modified and it joined the United Nations.  Andorra is not part of the EU but it is a member of the customs union.  While it is not part of the Schengen zone it might as well be since, both Spain and France are members and, you can't get to Andorra without first traveling through either Spain or France.  Catalan is the official language but most everyone also speaks either Castilian Spanish or French.

Andorra did not have its own currency and used both Spanish Pesetas and French Francs until the Euro was introduced.  So while the country is not part of the Eurozone it still uses the Euro as its official currency.

Here's a Rick Steves video about Andorra that I found on YouTube.

©Rick Steves

Update 2025:  Here's a short video I found on YouTube about Andorra.

©History Matters

The Euro - €

The euro (€) is the official currency of the European Union, and is used by 327 million Europeans in 16 of the 27 member countries. After the U.S. dollar, it is the 2nd largest reserve currency and the 2nd most traded currency.

Inspiration for the € symbol itself came from the Greek epsilon (Є), as a reference to the cradle of European civilization, and the first letter of the word Europe. It is crossed by two parallel lines to ‘certify’ the stability of the euro.


€1 is divided in to 100 cents. The coins come in denominations of 1c, 2c, 5c, 10c, 20c, 50c, €1 and €2. One side of the coin is common and the other side is a national side that shows an image specifically chosen by the country that issued the coin. Kind of like how each U.S. quarter features a different state.

Banknotes come in denominations of €5, €10, €20, €50, €100, €200 and €500. Each banknote has its own color and is dedicated to an artistic period of European architecture. The front of the note features windows or gateways and the back has bridges.

Just like Czech money, the coins and banknotes get physically larger as the value increases.

Countries have to meet strict criteria in order to join the Eurozone. For example, a country's budget deficit must be less than 3% of it's GDP, its debt ratio must be less than 60% of its GDP, inflation must be low and interest rates must be close to the EU average. All new EU countries must work towards eventually adopting the euro. The only 3 long-standing EU countries that have yet to adopt it are the UK, Denmark and Sweden. It will be several years before the Czechs start using it. Slovakia switched to the euro 1 year ago. I think Slovaks are kind of proud that they switched before the Czechs could.

It is nice to be able to use a single currency in most of Europe. The problem is that, for the most part, I now think in Czech Crowns. So when I see something priced in euros, I first have to mentally convert the euros into dollars, and then convert the dollars into crowns so that I realize just how much I'm spending. Kind of crazy, I know. But at least I don't have to figure out marks, schillings and lire.

Update:  The following countries all use the Euro as their official currency even though they are not members of the Eurozone or the EU:  Andorra, Kosovo, Monaco, Montenegro, San Marino and Vatican City.

Update:  In 2013, the new €5 banknote was released in to circulation.

Update:  In 2014, the new €10 banknote was released in to circulation. 

Update:  In 2015, the new €20 banknote was released in to circulation.

Update:  In 2017, the new €50 banknote was released in to circulation.

Update:  In 2019, the new €100 & €200 banknotes were released in to circulation.