On 12 & 13 January 2022, the 30 Allied Chiefs of Defence will meet virtually for the first of their scheduled meetings in this format. The first day of sessions focused on Military Strategic Thinking as well as military requirements and capabilities.
Opening the first day of meetings, the Chair of the NATO Military Committee, Admiral Bauer welcomed all 30 Chiefs of Defence to the first meeting in this format of 2022. “We are at a pivotal moment for our shared security. Ahead of next month’s ministerial and the upcoming Summit, it is primordial that you, the Chiefs of Defence provided unfettered military advice to the North Atlantic Council on a multitude of topics, ranging from our current Deterrence and Defence Posture, to our future requirements in the digital era, as well as enhancing our military cooperation with Partners. Our strength as an Alliance lies not only in our cohesion and our decisiveness, but also in our ability to prepare together for the future and the unexpected”, he emphasized.
NATO Chiefs of Defence then engaged in discussions with Supreme Allied Commander Transformation, General Lavigne and Supreme Allied Commander Europe, General Wolters, on the existing and potential new opportunities to enable NATO’s troops, capabilities and procedures to deliver on its three core tasks in the digital era. “At NATO, we are acutely aware of the challenges and opportunities offered by the digital era, and we are actively engaged in a digital transformation of our ways of working, our equipment and our human resources. We must now translate these opportunities into actual processes that will enable us to better support our commanders at sea, on land, in the air and to those working in the cyber and space domains”, clarified Admiral Bauer.
In the final session of the day, Allied Chiefs of Defence focused on the Alliance’ Strategic Military Thinking and how it should feed into NATO’s new Strategic Concept. They were also briefed on the implementation of NATO’s Warfighting Capstone Concept as well as the progress on the Concept for the Deterrence and Defence of the Euro-Atlantic Area.
The meeting will resume on 13 January with a discussion on NATO’s 360° Deterrence and Defence Posture as well as dedicated session with Partners Ukraine and Georgia.