Editing North Atlantic Treaty (section)

===Founding members===

The following twelve states signed the treaty and thus became the founding members of NATO. The following leaders signed the agreement as [[Plenipotentiary|plenipotentiaries]] of their countries in [[Washington, D.C.]], on 4 April 1949:<ref>{{cite book | last = Bevans | first = Charles Irving | title = Treaties and other international agreements of the United States of America 1776–1949 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=0M8WAAAAYAAJ | access-date = 2013-05-01 | volume = 4, Multilateral 1946–1949 | year = 1968 | publisher = Department of State | location = Washington, D.C. | oclc = 6940 | lccn = 70600742 | page = 831 | chapter = North Atlantic Treaty | archive-date = 9 October 2023 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20231009003230/https://books.google.com/books?id=0M8WAAAAYAAJ | url-status = live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://nato.int/cps/en/natohq/declassified_137725.htm|title=NATO Declassified – Treaty Signatories|publisher=NATO|access-date=26 March 2017|archive-date=26 June 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230626203908/https://www.nato.int/cps/en/natohq/declassified_137725.htm|url-status=live}}</ref>
* {{Flag|Belgium}} – Prime Minister and Foreign Minister [[Paul-Henri Spaak]] and Ambassador Baron {{ill|Robert Silvercruys|de}}
* {{Flag|Canada|1921}} – Secretary of State for External Affairs [[Lester B. Pearson]] and Ambassador [[H. H. Wrong]]
* {{Flag|Denmark}} – Foreign Minister [[Gustav Rasmussen]] and Ambassador [[Henrik Kauffmann]]
* {{Flagcountry|French Fourth Republic}} – Foreign Minister [[Robert Schuman]] and Ambassador [[Henri Bonnet]]
* {{Flag|Iceland}} – Foreign Minister [[Bjarni Benediktsson (born 1908)|Bjarni Benediktsson]] and Ambassador [[Thor Thors]]
* {{Flag|Italy}} – Foreign Minister [[Carlo Sforza]] and Ambassador [[Alberto Tarchiani]]
* {{Flag|Luxembourg}} –  Foreign Minister [[Joseph Bech]] and Ambassador [[Hugues Le Gallais]]
* {{Flag|Netherlands}} – Foreign Minister [[Dirk Stikker]] and Ambassador [[Eelco van Kleffens]]
* {{Flag|Norway}} – Foreign Minister [[Halvard Lange|Halvard M. Lange]] and Ambassador [[:no:Wilhelm von Munthe af Morgenstierne|Wilhelm von Munthe af Morgenstierne]]
* {{Flagcountry|Estado Novo (Portugal)}} – Foreign Minister [[José Caeiro da Mata]] and Ambassador [[Pedro Teotónio Pereira]]
* {{Flag|United Kingdom}} – Foreign Secretary [[Ernest Bevin]] and Ambassador [[Oliver Franks, Baron Franks|Oliver Franks]]
* {{Flag|United States|1912}} – Secretary of State [[Dean Acheson]]