<p>For Argentina to join NATO, the 32 members of this alliance must agree to the request by consensus.</p>
On Thursday, Argentine Defense Minister Luis Petri said that his country has applied to become a "global partner" of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).
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Argentina has been an "extra-NATO ally" since 1998, when then-U.S. President Bill Clinton gave the green light to Argentine President Carlos Menem, but "global partner" status is a "step up."