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NATO Defense College (NDC) is the international
military A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. It is typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with its members identifiable by their distinct ...
college A college (Latin: ''collegium'') is an educational institution or a constituent part of one. A college may be a degree-awarding tertiary educational institution, a part of a collegiate or federal university, an institution offering ...
for
North Atlantic Treaty Organization The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...
countries. It is located in
Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...
,
Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...
.


History

The idea of a NATO Defense College originated with General
Dwight D. Eisenhower Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; ; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was an American military officer and statesman who served as the 34th president of the United States from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, ...
, the first
Supreme Allied Commander Europe The Supreme Allied Commander Europe (SACEUR) is the commander of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization's (NATO) Allied Command Operations (ACO) and head of ACO's headquarters, Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe (SHAPE). The commander is ...
, who identified very early on the need for a new international institution with a unique education mission. On 19 November 1951, the NATO Defense College opened its doors to Course 1 in
Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
. In 1966, France withdrew from the Alliance's integrated military structure and the College moved to the
EUR The euro (symbol: €; code: EUR) is the official currency of 19 out of the member states of the European Union (EU). This group of states is known as the eurozone or, officially, the euro area, and includes about 340 million citizens . Th ...
quartier of
Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...
, where it continues to fulfil its mission. On 10 September 1999, the new College building, twice the size of the old one, was inaugurated in Cecchignola Città Militare, a military zone 2 km from the former site. On 13–14 October 2016, the NATO Defense College celebrated the 50th anniversary of its move to Rome and the 65th anniversary of its foundation.


Mission

In response to Strategic Guidance issued to the NDC by the
North Atlantic Council The North Atlantic Council (NAC) is the principal political decision-making body of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), consisting of permanent representatives of its member countries. It was established by Article 9 of the North A ...
and the
NATO Military Committee The North Atlantic Treaty Organisation Military Committee (NATO MC) is the body of NATO that is composed of member states' Chiefs of Defence (CHOD). These national CHODs are regularly represented in the MC by their permanent Military Representative ...
(MC123/8), the NDC Mission is: * Contribute to effectiveness and cohesion of Alliance * Foster strategic level thinking on pol-mil matters * Develop major center of education, study, and research: ** Prepare selected officers and officials for important NATO and NATO-related multinational appointments ** Conduct academic studies and research in support of the Alliance's wider goals ** Support an active outreach programme with other educational institutions


Organization

The
commandant Commandant ( or ) is a title often given to the officer in charge of a military (or other uniformed service) training establishment or academy. This usage is common in English-speaking nations. In some countries it may be a military or police ran ...
is an officer with the rank of
Lieutenant-General Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...
; on 16 July 2019 Lieutenant-General Olivier Rittimann (
French Army The French Army, officially known as the Land Army (french: Armée de Terre, ), is the land-based and largest component of the French Armed Forces. It is responsible to the Government of France, along with the other components of the Armed For ...
) assumed command. To accomplish its mission the college is organized into four main divisions that perform education and research tasks coordinated by the dean (civilian equivalent of a 2-star general) of the college. The divisions work closely together to provide breadth, flexibility and quality of high-level strategic education. The Director of Management (a Brigadier General) supervises management of the NDC's financial and technical resources with the aim of improving the quality of life in the college and creating the best conditions for work and study.


Core business


Education

Six regular courses are held at the college: *The Senior Course: The most important course at the NDC. It lasts 5½ months and runs twice a year. Some 15 weeks are spent in the college, with the rest of the time on Field Studies. There is a 2-3 day crisis management exercise at the end of the Course. The Course is open to officers (Colonels, Lieutenant Colonels) and civilian officials and diplomats (of equivalent rank). Over 200 attend each year (approximately 25% civilian). The Senior Course is open not only to NATO nations but also to Partnership for Peace-Mediterranean Dialogue-Istanbul Cooperation Initiative nations, Contact Countries and Iraq. *Generals, Flag Officers & Ambassadors' Course (GFOAC): This high-level course seeks to enhance mutual understanding of security concerns and of NATO's interests and capabilities among Generals and Flag Officers and high-ranking civilians including ambassadors from NATO, PfP, Med Dialogue and ICI nations, Contact Countries & Iraq. It also provides opportunities for networking among one- to three-star officers and civilians of equivalent rank. *NATO Regional Cooperation Course (NRCC): Commissioned by the North Atlantic Council at the Riga summit in 2006, after two years of preparation the NRCC was inaugurated at the College in 2009 to link issues of concern to both MD and ICI Nations and NATO, and to develop mutual understanding and networking among participants. It shares lecturers with the Senior Course (40% of the time), and also has its own separate facilities and lecturers, mostly from the ME region, and its own Faculty Advisors and staff. The NRCC offers a ten-week academic programme twice each year. *Modular Short Courses (MSCs): The NDC offers five MSCs during every Senior Course for the duration 5 days. This is an opportunity for military officers and civilian officials who may not be able to attend the NDC for a six-month period. Each MSC is designed to both inform and stimulate the participants by providing the opportunity to improve their knowledge and develop their understanding of some of the key political, economic, socio-cultural, defence and security related issues which may have worldwide implications for global and Alliance security. *Senior Executive Regional Conference (SERC): This week-long conference is dedicated to a select, high-profile group of diplomats, senior officials, high-ranking officers, policy planners and researchers, from NATO member states as well as from the Alliance's partner countries in the Gulf and Mediterranean area. Participants successfully engaged in an intensive week of study, dialogue and open discussion on the strategic issues which are currently of particular relevance to the security of the countries represented. *Integrated Partner Orientation Course (IPOC): The aim of the Integrated Partner Orientation Course (IPOC) is to improve participants' knowledge of the NATO Alliance; its missions, roles and priorities; its internal structures and organisation; and its external relations with partner nations and international institutions. The course examines the way in which each of these elements is evolving to reflect changes in the international security environment, which is similar to the structure of the NDC Senior Course.


Research

Research at the NATO Defense College, carried out by the Research Division (RD), provides the NATO's senior leaders with timely analyses and recommendations on current issues concerning the Alliance. The activities of the RD can help to convey NATO's positions to the wider audience of the international strategic community. The RD performs its tasks mainly through research papers – short academic essays and academic reports, and forum papers – in-depth studies, analyses and reports. Over the last year, the Research Division published about 20 studies and analyses, about 30 articles in journals (''International Herald Tribune'', ''International Affairs'', ''Defense News'', ''Politique Étrangère'', ''Washington Times'', etc.), was regularly quoted in the ''New York Times'', ''Newsweek'', ''Le Figaro'' and news agencies, etc. The RD also organized 8 conferences and workshops and co-facilitated Reykjavik Conferences on Arctic Security and a Military Committee workshop on the Strategic Concept.


Outreach activities

The NDC has four main outreach activities:


The Conference of Commandants (of Defence Colleges)

Which has a dual purpose. *firstly, to facilitate the exchange of information between those responsible for higher defence education with a view to improving curricula and teaching methods; *secondly, to promote cooperation in higher defence education between colleges in NATO countries and their counterparts in central and east European and Mediterranean Dialogue countries.


Kyiv Week

NATO's support for senior military education in Ukraine started with the first "International Week", held in February 2001. Since then a similar course has been running every year involving more than 500 participants at a time. The formal aims of the International Week are: *to improve knowledge of NATO, its organization and working methods; *to discuss the challenges facing the Atlantic Alliance and its partners in today's security environment; *to address key, current issues in the field of international security; *to demonstrate the importance of a strong partnership between Ukraine and NATO.


The Partnership for Peace Consortium of Defense Academies and Security Studies Institutes

Was established in 1999 at the Washington Summit as a Consortium of the Willing and founded in the spirit of Partnership for Peace (PfP). By Military Committee direction, the NATO Defense College "is the focal military point of contact within NATO" for the consortium, composed of 300 organizations in 46 countries. The NDC is actively involved in 6 of the 10 working groups.


Advanced Distributed Learning

ADL's goal is to provide learning systems that are both more effective and more cost-effective. Course members must follow at least one of the three different ADL courses, to ensure that they have all attained the same level of knowledge before embarking on the Senior Course. The Introduction to NATO (the NATO Defense College is the content provider for this course); European Security and Defence Policy, and RMA - the Revolution in Military Affairs.


Commandants

The NATO Defense College commandants have been: *1951-1953 - Admiral André-Georges Lemonnier (French Navy) *1953-1955 - Air Marshal Sir Lawrence Darvall (Royal Air Force) *1955-1957 - Lieutenant General
Clovis E. Byers Lieutenant general (United States), Lieutenant General Clovis Ethelbert Byers (November 5, 1899 – December 13, 1973) was a United States Army officer who served in the first half of the 20th century. He is best known for his role as Chief of st ...
(U.S. Army) *1957-1958 - Lieutenant General E. De Renzi (Italian Army) *1958 - Major General E.N.K. Estcourt (British Army) - Acting Commandant *1958-1959 - Air Lieutenant General
Tekin Arıburun Mehmet Tekin Arıburun (October 3, 1903 – October 13, 1993) was a Turkish soldier and statesman. He was born in then-Ottoman territory of Ishtib, Kosovo Vilayet (today Štip, part of the Republic of Macedonia). He was the last (Acting) Presi ...
(Turkish Air Force) *1959-1961 - Lieutenant General O. Harteon (Belgian Army) *1961-1963 - Lieutenant General U. De Martino (Italian Army) *1963-1965 - Lieutenant General Wolf Graf Von Baudissin (German Army) *1965-1966 - Lieutenant General D.S. Fanali (Italian Air Force) *1966-1968 - Lieutenant General E. Tufte Johnsen (Royal Norwegian Air Force) *1968-1970 - Lieutenant General (Turkish Army) *1970-1974 - Vice Admiral J.E. O'Brien (Canadian Forces (Maritime)) *1974-1976 - Lieutenant General (Danish Army) *1976-1979 - Lieutenant General R.J.W. Heslinga (Royal Netherlands Army) *1979-1981 - Vice Admiral Sir Lancelot Bell-Davies (Royal Navy) *1981-1984 - Lieutenant General J.G. Kotsolakis (Greek Air Force) *1984-1987 - Lieutenant General F.l.S. Uhle-Wettler (German Army) *1987-1989 - Lieutenant General A. Everaert (Belgian Army) *1989-1993 - Lieutenant General P.M.A. Castelo Branco (Portuguese Air Force) *1993-1996 - Lieutenant General R.J. Evraire (Canadian Forces (Land)) *1996-1999 - Lieutenant General Lecea Dezcallar (Spanish Army) *1999-2002 - Lieutenant General H. Olboeter (German Air Force) *2002-2005 - Lieutenant General J.P. Raffene (French Army) *2005-2008 - Lieutenant General M. Vankeirsbilck (Belgian Air Component) *2008-2011 - Lieutenant General Wolf-Dieter Loeser (German Army) *2011-2014 - Lieutenant General Arne Bård Dalhaug (Norwegian Army) *2014-2016 - Major General
Janusz Bojarski Major General Janusz Bojarski (born 24 June 1956, Krasnosielc, Poland) General Officer of Polish Armed Forces The Armed Forces of the Republic of Poland ( pl, Siły Zbrojne Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej, abbreviated ''SZ RP''; popularly called '' ...
(Polish Air Force) *2016–2020 - Lieutenant General Chris Whitecross (Royal Canadian Air Force) *2020–present - Lieutenant General Olivier Rittimann (French Army)


See also

*
European Security and Defence College The European Security and Defence College (ESDC) is an EU body embedded in the External Action Service (EEAS) of the European Union (EU) that provides training and education at EU level in the field of the Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP) ...
*
Joint European Union Intelligence School The Joint European Union Intelligence School (JEIS) is a project of the Permanent Structured Cooperation (PESCO) that was announced in November 2018. The project will be led by Cyprus and Greece. The school will provide education and training in in ...
*
Military Erasmus The Military Erasmus Programme, formally the European initiative for the exchange of young officers inspired by Erasmus, is an initiative undertaken by the European Union (EU) member states aimed at developing the exchanges between armed forces of ...
*
NATO School The NATO School Oberammergau in southern Germany is NATO's key training facility on the operational level. The School started with two courses in 1953 and now offers over 100 different courses to Alliance members and partners on subjects relate ...


References


External links


NATO Defense College
{{Authority control Educational institutions established in 1951 Universities and colleges in Rome Military schools 1951 establishments in Italy