NEW DELHI: A lawmaker on Monday introduced a bill in the US House of Representatives to terminate the designation of Pakistan as a Major non-NATO Ally (MNNA) a status that allows for various benefits such as access to excess US defence supplies and participation in cooperative defence research and development projects. Here is a look at the meaning and advantages of MNNA status. What is the Nato alliance?The North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (Nato) is an intergovernmental military alliance of 30 North American and European states. The alliance came into existence following the 1949 North Atlantic Treaty. The aim of the alliance is to constitute a system of collective defence whereby members agree to mutual defence in response to an external attack. Who are major non-Nato allies countries?The United States has designated 30 other countries as major non-Nato allies. These non-Nato countries share a strategic working relationship with the US Armed Forces. The MNNA status is granted to countries from Korea to Argentina, depending upon US strategic interests. Brazil was the latest country to b granted this status in 2020 by Donald Trump. The MNNA status was first created in 1987. The initial MNNAs were Australia, Egypt, Israel, Japan, and South Korea. When did Pakistan become MNNA?Pakistan became a part of this group in 2004 under the presidency of George W Bush. In 2017, US representatives Ted Poe and Rick Nolan introduced bill H.R. 3000 to revoke the status of Pakistan as a major non-Nato ally. In the same year, General Joseph Dunford, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, accused Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence of having ties to terror groups. According to a report, the US administration discussed downgrading Pakistan's status as major non-Nato allies as one of the possible responses. What are the benefits availed by MNNA states?While the major non-Nato ally status or its equivalent, does not automatically enjoin a mutual defence pact with the United States (as it does with Nato allies) it still confers a variety of military and financial advantages that otherwise are not obtainable by non-NATO countries, depending on the version of the amendment that is eventually signed by the President. Here is a look at some of the benefits of MNNA status:

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Explained: What is a 'Major non-Nato Ally' status? - Times of India