So what a surprise the ambassadors were dealt two months ago when the new secretary general, Anders Fogh Rasmussen, entered the alliance headquarters.
From Moscow's perspective, Ukraine's NATO membership may be viewed in a far more negative light than former Warsaw Pact members that entered the alliance or than the three Baltic states, which were former Soviet republics, that also joined NATO.
It could enter the OneWorld alliance, led by British Airways, which would allow it to remain independent, or it could join forces with Lufthansa, which leads the Star Alliance.
For these three small and fiercely independent democracies lead the list of nine nations seeking to enter the NATO alliance in 2002.
Mr. Elop, a former senior Microsoft executive who made the decision to enter the software alliance with his former employer in February, said the new Lumia devices showed that Nokia, which is based in Espoo, Finland, was delivering on his promise of a turnaround.
A visa to enter the Northern Alliance-occupied section of Afghanistan.
More important, it convinced France to enter the war in alliance with the United States, openly providing money, soldiers, and munitions, as well fighting a naval war worldwide against Britain.
Hours before the attack on Kunduz was set to begin, General Uria said he had obtained "secret" agreements with a number of Taliban commanders in Kunduz to allow the alliance to enter the city.
Taken with the announcement last month of a financing and import deal with Pang Da Automobile Trade, also of China, Spyker has now negotiated what it calls a "tripartite" alliance to enter the Chinese market.
