LISBON, Portugal – Paulo Rangel has an idea for a name change, and he’s not afraid to voice it. Rangel, the Foreign Minister of Portugal, has put forward a proposal to rename NATO. Saying that his version rolls off the tongue easier in any language, Rangel has proposed that NATO become TONA. 

In practice, the full name of the organization would change slightly. NATO stands for the North Atlantic Treaty Organization; it was formed in 1949, as a means of combating Soviet threats during the Cold War. The change to TONA would accompany a rewording of the international body’s name to the Treaty Organization of the North Atlantic.

According to NATO (or, potentially TONA) rules, all decisions must be made by consensus, meaning that every member of the organization must agree. Certainly a change in the name of the organization would require unanimous consent. Whether the member states will agree remains to be seen.

Reaction to Rangel’s proposal was mixed. French President Emmanuel Macron welcomed the change, saying that the word order would more match constructions in the French language. Alain Berset, President of the Swiss Confederation and Switzerland’s de facto head of state, said that he could see both sides of the issue but had no preference. A spokeswoman for U.S. President Donald Trump responded enthusiastically, saying, “President Trump doesn’t really like NATO anyway. Maybe a name change would make him reconsider his position.”

Asked why he proposed such a thing, Rangel said that he was bored.