Adopted in 1953. The North Atlantic Council approved a flag for NATO, the design of which was a white and blue compass on a dark blue background. The symbolism of the emblem was described as "a four-pointed star representing the compass that keeps us on the right road, the path of peace, and a circle representing the unity that binds together the 14 (original) countries of NATO." The blue background represented the Atlantic Ocean and the circle symbolized unity. There are currently 30 NATO member nations: Albania, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Montenegro, Netherlands, North Macedonia, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Turkey, United Kingdom, United States.