Member States Dissolve Western European Union

The Western European Union has been dissolved by its ten member states, the WEU Presidency announced in statement Wednesday.

Bulgaria has the status of an associate partner country, which places it among the 18 observer nations in the Western European Union which are NATO and EU members.

"The WEU has therefore fulfilled its historic role. That is why we, the states party to the modified Treaty of Brussels, have collectively decided to end the treaty and thereby close the organization," the statement said.

The WEU was formed by Belgium, Britain, France, Luxembourg and the Netherlands in 1948 as a Cold War Alliance. However, its significance was soon overshadowed by NATO which incorporated the former West Germany.

"From a budgetary point of view, maintaining the WEU became difficult to defend,“ said Belgian Foreign Minister Steven Vanackere in a communique.

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