Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what the UK's obligations under Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty are in relation to (a) Guam and (b) Hawaii; and if he will make a statement.

Article 6 of the Washington Treaty defines the geographical scope of Article 5 primarily as 'the territory of any of the Parties in Europe or North America' or 'islands under the jurisdiction of any of the Parties in the North Atlantic Area north of the Tropic of Cancer.' However, any attack against the United States, whether directed against Hawaii, Guam, or another US state or territory, is likely to be part of a major conflict. In such a case, either the consultation provisions of Article 4 or the collective defence provisions of Article 5 would plainly apply, and the decision of the North Atlantic Council would determine the response of the Alliance.