SEATO, short for the Southeast Asia Treaty Organization, was a military alliance established in 1954 by the United States and other Western countries to contain the spread of communism in Southeast Asia. SEATO was formed in the aftermath of the Korean War and was intended to be a regional counterpart to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) in Europe. The organization included the United States, France, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Pakistan, Thailand, the Philippines, and later, South Korea. SEATO's main objectives were to promote regional stability and security, and to provide collective defense against the spread of communism in Southeast Asia. The organization established a military command structure and a mutual defense pact, in which member countries agreed to come to the aid of any member that was the victim of an armed attack. SEATO was active during the 1950s and 1960s, with its members participating in a number of military exercises and training programs. However, the organization's effectiveness was limited by the lack of commitment from some of its members and the fact that the communist threat in Southeast Asia was primarily internal and not external. As a result, SEATO failed to achieve its main objectives and became increasingly inactive in the 1970s, and was dissolved in 1977.