Approved by the Heads
of State and Government
participating in the
meeting
of the North Atlantic
Council in Washington D.C.
on 23rd and 24th April
1999
Introduction
-
(...) [The Alliance] must maintain collective
defence and reinforce the transatlantic link and ensure a balance that
allows the European Allies to assume greater responsibility.
(...)
Part II - Strategic Perspectives
The Evolving Strategic Environment
(...)
- NATO has successfully adapted
to enhance its ability to contribute to Euro-Atlantic peace and stability.
Internal reform has included a new command structure, including the
Combined Joint Task Force (CJTF) concept, the creation of arrangements
to permit the rapid deployment of forces for the full range of the
Alliance's missions, and the building of the European Security and
Defence Identity (ESDI) within the Alliance.
- The United Nations (UN), the
Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), the European
Union (EU), and the Western European Union (WEU) have made distinctive
contributions to Euro-Atlantic security and stability. Mutually reinforcing
organisations have become a central feature of the security environment.
(...)
- The European Union has taken
important decisions and given a further impetus to its efforts to
strengthen its security and defence dimension. This process will have
implications for the entire Alliance, and all European Allies should
be involved in it, building on arrangements developed by NATO and
the WEU. The development of a common foreign and security policy (CFSP)
includes the progressive framing of a common defence policy. Such
a policy, as called for in the Amsterdam Treaty, would be compatible
with the common security and defence policy established within the
framework of the Washington Treaty. Important steps taken in this
context include the incorporation of the WEU's Petersberg tasks into
the Treaty on European Union and the development of closer institutional
relations with the WEU.
- As stated in the 1994 Summit
declaration and reaffirmed in Berlin in 1996, the Alliance fully supports
the development of the European Security and Defence Identity within
the Alliance by making available its assets and capabilities for WEU-led
operations. To this end, the Alliance and the WEU have developed a
close relationship and put into place key elements of the ESDI as
agreed in Berlin. In order to enhance peace and stability in Europe
and more widely, the European Allies are strengthening their capacity
for action, including by increasing their military capabilities. The
increase of the responsibilities and capacities of the European Allies
with respect to security and defence enhances the security environment
of the Alliance.
(...)
Part III - The Approach to Security
in the 21st Century
(...)
The European Security And Defence
Identity
-
The Alliance, which is the foundation
of the collective defence of its members and through which common security
objectives will be pursued wherever possible, remains committed to a balanced
and dynamic transatlantic partnership. The European Allies have taken decisions
to enable them to assume greater responsibilities in the security and defence
field in order to enhance the peace and stability of the Euro-Atlantic
area and thus the security of all Allies. On the basis of decisions taken
by the Alliance, in Berlin in 1996 and subsequently, the European Security
and Defence Identity will continue to be developed within NATO. This process
will require close cooperation between NATO, the WEU and, if and when appropriate,
the European Union. It will enable all European Allies to make a more coherent
and effective contribution to the missions and activities of the Alliance
as an expression of our shared responsibilities; it will reinforce the
transatlantic partnership; and it will assist the European Allies to act
by themselves as required through the readiness of the Alliance, on a case-by-case
basis and by consensus, to make its assets and capabilities available for
operations in which the Alliance is not engaged militarily under the political
control and strategic direction either of the WEU or as otherwise agreed,
taking into account the full participation of all European Allies if they
were so to choose. (...)
Part IV - Guidelines for the
Alliance's Forces
Principles Of Alliance Strategy
(...)
-
The achievement of the Alliance's aims
depends critically on the equitable sharing of the roles, risks and responsibilities,
as well as the benefits, of common defence. The presence of United States
conventional and nuclear forces in Europe remains vital to the security
of Europe, which is inseparably linked to that of North America. The North
American Allies contribute to the Alliance through military forces available
for Alliance missions, through their broader contribution to international
peace and security, and through the provision of unique training facilities
on the North American continent. The European Allies also make wide-ranging
and substantial contributions. As the process of developing the ESDI within
the Alliance progresses, the European Allies will further enhance their
contribution to the common defence and to international peace and stability
including through multinational formations.
(...)
-
The Alliance supports the further development
of the ESDI within the Alliance, including by being prepared to make available
assets and capabilities for operations under the political control and
strategic direction either of the WEU or as otherwise agreed.
(...)
The Alliance's Force Posture
The Missions of Alliance Military
Forces
(...)
-
In contributing to the management of
crises through military operations, the Alliance's forces will have to
deal with a complex and diverse range of actors, risks, situations and
demands, including humanitarian emergencies. Some non-Article 5 crisis
response operations may be as demanding as some collective defence missions.
Well-trained and well-equipped forces at adequate levels of readiness and
in sufficient strength to meet the full range of contingencies as well
as the appropriate support structures, planning tools and command and control
capabilities are essential in providing efficient military contributions.
The Alliance should also be prepared to support, on the basis of separable
but not separate capabilities, operations under the political control and
strategic direction either of the WEU or as otherwise agreed. The potential
participation of Partners and other non-NATO nations in NATO-led operations
as well as possible operations with Russia would be further valuable elements
of NATO's contribution to managing crises that affect Euro-Atlantic security.
(...)
Guidelines for the Alliance's
Force Posture
-
To implement the Alliance's fundamental
security tasks and the principles of its strategy, the forces of the Alliance
must continue to be adapted to meet the requirements of the full range
of Alliance missions effectively and to respond to future challenges. The
posture of Allies' forces, building on the strengths of different national
defence structures, will conform to the guidelines developed in the following
paragraphs.
-
The size, readiness, availability and
deployment of the Alliance's military forces will reflect its commitment
to collective defence and to conduct crisis response operations, sometimes
at short notice, distant from their home stations, including beyond the
Allies' territory. The characteristics of the Alliance's forces will also
reflect the provisions of relevant arms control agreements. Alliance forces
must be adequate in strength and capabilities to deter and counter aggression
against any Ally. They must be interoperable and have appropriate doctrines
and technologies. They must be held at the required readiness and deployability,
and be capable of military success in a wide range of complex joint and
combined operations, which may also include Partners and other non-NATO
nations.
-
This means in particular:
(...)
c. that NATO's command structure
will be able to undertake command and control of the full range of the
Alliance's military missions including through the use of deployable combined
and joint HQs, in particular CJTF headquarters, to command and control
multinational and multiservice forces. It will also be able to support
operations under the political control and strategic direction either of
the WEU or as otherwise agreed, thereby contributing to the development
of the ESDI within the Alliance, and to conduct NATO-led non-Article 5
crisis response operations in which Partners and other countries may participate;
(...)
Characteristics of Conventional
Forces
(...)
-
Given reduced overall force levels and
constrained resources, the ability to work closely together will remain
vital for achieving the Alliance's missions. The Alliance's collective
defence arrangements in which, for those concerned, the integrated military
structure plays the key role, are essential in this regard. The various
strands of NATO's defence planning need to be effectively coordinated at
all levels in order to ensure the preparedness of the forces and supporting
structures to carry out the full spectrum of their roles. Exchanges of
information among the Allies about their force plans contribute to securing
the availability of the capabilities needed for the execution of these
roles. Consultations in case of important changes in national defence plans
also remain of key importance. Cooperation in the development of new operational
concepts will be essential for responding to evolving security challenges.
The detailed practical arrangements that have been developed as part of
the ESDI within the Alliance contribute to close allied co-operation without
unnecessary duplication of assets and capabilities.
(...)
-
The Alliance's ability to accomplish
the full range of its missions will rely increasingly on multinational
forces, complementing national commitments to NATO for the Allies concerned.
Such forces, which are applicable to the full range of Alliance missions,
demonstrate the Alliance's resolve to maintain a credible collective defence;
enhance Alliance cohesion; and reinforce the transatlantic partnership
and strengthen the ESDI within the Alliance. Multinational forces, particularly
those capable of deploying rapidly for collective defence or for non-Article
5 crisis response operations, reinforce solidarity. They can also provide
a way of deploying more capable formations than might be available purely
nationally, thus helping to make more efficient use of scarce defence resources.
This may include a highly integrated, multinational approach to specific
tasks and functions, an approach which underlies the implementation of
the CJTF concept. For peace support operations, effective multinational
formations and other arrangements involving Partners will be valuable.
In order to exploit fully the potential offered by multinational formations,
improving interoperability, inter alia through sufficient training and
exercises, is of the highest importance.
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