On 28 August 1952, in Paris, the parties to the North Atlantic Treaty sign the Protocol on the Status of International Military Headquarters set up pursuant to the Treaty — a protocol to the Status of Forces Agreement signed in London on 19 June 1951.

The document defines the status of NATO headquarters and their personnel in the parties’ territories, completing the 1951 SOFA. Authentic texts are English and French; the United States Government is depositary of the original.

Entry into force came on 10 April 1954; the treaty was registered in the UNTS (vol. 200, No. 2678). The Federal Republic of Germany later acceded (1969).

The protocol remains a legal pillar of NATO headquarters’ presence in Europe.

For the Atlantic Alliance, 28 August 1952 marks the Paris signature.

The official text is published by NATO and in the United Nations Treaty Series.

The Paris Protocol of 28 August 1952 remains the NATO military HQ status milestone.

Image: Paris/NATO; Wikimedia Commons. Cropped to 16:9.

Source consulted: Paris Protocol (1952). Treaty text: NATO — Protocol on Status of International Military HQ (28 August 1952).