Text fwd: 21st Century NATO: Military Operations In Three Continents, Mideast

Stop NATO

http://www.nato.int/issues/operations/index.html
NATO International
March 11, 2009

Military operations

-Since its first military intervention in 1995, NATO has been engaged in an
increasingly diverse array of operations. Today, roughly 70,000 military
personnel are engaged in NATO missions around the world, successfully managing
complex ground, air and naval operations in all types of environment. These
forces are currently operating in Afghanistan, Kosovo, Iraq, the Mediterranean
and Somalia.

-Between the Balkans and Afghanistan lies Iraq, where NATO has been conducting
[an] important support operation.
At the Istanbul Summit in June 2004, the Allies rose above their differences and
agreed to be part of the international effort to help Iraq establish effective
and accountable security forces. The outcome was the creation of the NATO
Training Mission in Iraq (NTM-I).

-With the launching of the maritime surveillance operation Active Endeavour in
October 2001, NATO added a new dimension to the global fight against terrorism.

-From October to December 2008, NATO launched Operation Allied Provider, which
involved...activities off the coast of Somalia.

-These first three...operations [Bosnia, Kosovo, Macedonia] demonstrated
NATO’s readiness to act decisively when called upon by the International
Community. What followed was a period of unprecedented operational activity for
the Alliance.

NATO is an active and leading contributor to peace and security [sic] on the
international stage. Through its military operations, the Alliance demonstrates
both its willingness to act as a positive force for change and its capacity to
meet the security challenges of the 21st century.

Since its first military intervention in 1995, NATO has been engaged in an
increasingly diverse array of operations. Today, roughly 70,000 military
personnel are engaged in NATO missions around the world, successfully managing
complex ground, air and naval operations in all types of environment. These
forces are currently operating in Afghanistan, Kosovo, Iraq, the Mediterranean
and Somalia.

Current military operations and missions

Since its first intervention in the Balkans in 1995, the tempo and diversity of
NATO operations have only increased. NATO has since been engaged in missions
that cover the full spectrum of military operations – from combat and
peacekeeping, to training and logistics support, to surveillance and
humanitarian relief. Today, they are operating in Afghanistan, Kosovo, Iraq, the
Mediterranean and Somalia.

NATO in Afghanistan

NATO’s mission in Afghanistan constitutes the Alliance’s most significant
undertaking to date. Established by UN mandate in 2001, the International
Security Assistance Force (ISAF) has been under NATO leadership since August
2003.

ISAF comprises some 55,000 troops from over 40 different countries deployed
throughout Afghanistan....

NATO in Kosovo

While Afghanistan remains NATO’s primary operational theatre, the Alliance has
not faltered on its other commitments, particularly in the Balkans.

Today, roughly 15,000 Allied troops operate in the Balkans as part of NATO’s
Kosovo Force (KFOR).

Having first entered Kosovo in June 1999...KFOR troops continue to maintain a
strong presence throughout the territory, preserving the peace that was imposed
by NATO nearly a decade earlier.

Following Kosovo’s declaration of independence in February 2008, NATO agreed
it would continue to maintain its presence on the basis of UN Security Council
Resolution 1244 [sic]. In June 2008, the Alliance decided to take on
responsibility for supervising the dissolution of the Kosovo Protection Corps
and to help create a professional and multiethnic Kosovo Security Force.

NATO and Iraq

Between the Balkans and Afghanistan lies Iraq, where NATO has been conducting a
relatively small but important support operation.

At the Istanbul Summit in June 2004, the Allies rose above their differences and
agreed to be part of the international effort to help Iraq establish effective
and accountable security forces. The outcome was the creation of the NATO
Training Mission in Iraq (NTM-I).

The NTM-I delivers its training, advice and mentoring support in a number of
different settings. All NATO member countries are contributing to the training
effort either in or outside of Iraq, through financial contributions or
donations of equipment.

Monitoring the Mediterranean Sea

NATO operations are not limited only to zones of conflict. In the aftermath of
the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, NATO immediately began to take
measures to expand the options available to counter the threat of international
terrorism. With the launching of the maritime surveillance operation Active
Endeavour in October 2001, NATO added a new dimension to the global fight
against terrorism.

Led by NATO naval forces, Operation Active Endeavour is focused on...the
Mediterranean. The scope of this operation was later expanded to include the
escort of Allied civilian and commercial vessels through the Straight of
Gibraltar.

The operation has proved to be an effective too both in...a strategic maritime
region....Moreover, the experience and partnerships developed through Operation
Active Endeavour have considerably enhanced NATO’s capabilities in this
increasingly vital aspect of operations.
....
Since June 2007, NATO has assisted the AU Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) by
providing airlift support for AU peacekeepers. This support was authorized until
February 2009 and the Alliance is ready to consider any new requests from the
AU. NATO also continues to work with the AU in identifying further areas where
NATO could support the African Standby Force.

NATO’s support to AMISOM coincided with a similar support operation to the AU
peacekeeping mission in Sudan (AMIS). From June 2005 to December 2007, NATO
provided air transport for some 37,000 AMIS personnel, as well as trained and
mentored over 250 AMIS officials. While NATO’s support to this mission ended
when AMIS was succeeded by the UN-AU Mission in Darfur (UNAMID), the Alliance
immediately expressed its readiness to consider any request for support to the
new peacekeeping mission.

NATO’s continuing support to the AU is a testament to the Alliance’s
commitment to building partnerships and supporting peacekeeping and humanitarian
efforts beyond the Euro-Atlantic region.

From October to December 2008, NATO launched Operation Allied Provider, which
involved counter-piracy activities off the coast of Somalia.
....
Concurrently, in response to an urgent request from the African Union, these
same NATO naval forces escorted a vessel chartered by the AU carrying equipment
for the Burundi contingent deployed to AMISOM.

NATO in Bosnia and Herzegovina

Between 1995 and 2004, NATO led a peacekeeping force in Bosnia and
Herzegovina....

In light of the improved security situation, NATO brought its peace support
operation to a conclusion in December 2004 and the European Union deployed a new
force called Operation Althea. This has taken on the main peace stabilization
role previously undertaken by NATO under the Dayton Peace Agreement. NATO has
maintained a military headquarters in the country to carry out a number of
specific tasks related, in particular, to assisting the government in reforming
its defence structures.

NATO in the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia

...NATO implemented three successive operations there from August 2001 to March
2003.

First, Operation Essential Harvest disarmed ethnic Albanian groups operating on
Macedonia’s territory.

The follow-on Operation Amber Fox provided protection for international monitors
overseeing the implementation of the peace plan.

Finally, Operation Allied Harmony was launched in December 2002...throughout
Macedonian territory.

These operations in the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia demonstrated the
strong inter-institutional cooperation between NATO, the EU and the OSCE.
....
[T]hroughout the entire period of the Cold War, NATO forces were not involved in
a single military engagement. For much of the latter half of the 20th century,
NATO remained vigilant and prepared.

After the Cold War

With the end of the Cold War in the early 1990s came great changes to the
international security environment. The Alliance witnessed the emergence of new
threats and the resurgence of old but familiar ones.

With these changing conditions came new responsibilities. From being an
exclusively defensive alliance for nearly half a century, NATO began to assume
an increasingly proactive role within the International Community. This role
presented many challenges. The first test for NATO came in 1995, as the crisis
in the Balkans reached a tipping point.

NATO’s first military operation

After diplomatic efforts failed to end the conflict in Bosnia-Herzegovina (BiH),
the International Community [sic] called upon the Alliance to act, and NATO was
prepared to respond.

In August 1995, NATO launched Operation Deliberate Force to compel an end to
Serb-led violence in BiH. This successful air campaign paved the way to the
signing of the Dayton Peace Accords in December 1995.

To support the implementation of this peace agreement, NATO immediately deployed
a UN-mandated Implementation Force (IFOR) comprising some 60,000 troops. This
operation was followed in December 1996 with the deployment of a 32,000-strong
Stabilization Force (SFOR), which maintained a secure environment in BiH until
the mandate was handed over to a European Union (EU) force in December 2004.

These first three successful peace-support operations demonstrated NATO’s
readiness to act decisively when called upon by the International Community.
What followed was a period of unprecedented operational activity for the
Alliance.
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