On January 17-18 Military Committee will convene at NATO HQ in Brussels in Chiefs of Defence Session for the first time this year: NATO CHODs and leadership will address NATO and international security issues.
On the first day NATO's Command Structure Functional Assessment, enhanced deterrence and defence posture, and implementation of the Projecting Stability Initiative will be addressed. NATO CHODs will also review prospects of the Resolute Support Mission in Afghanistan ahead of the NATO Defence Ministers meeting February. Later discussions on military cooperation with the Mediterranean Dialogue and Interoperability Platform (Japan and South Korea) partners will follow.
On January 17 Commander of European Command and Supreme Allied Commander, Europe General Curtis M. Scaparrotti is planned to meet with the Baltic CHODs in the margins of the meeting, also, Chief of Defence of Lithuania Lieutenant General Jonas Vytautas Žukas will meet bilaterally with British Chief of the Defence Staff Air Chief Marshal Sir Stuart Peach.
On the second day the participants will meet with partners, Georgia and Ukraine, to discuss the status and progress of Georgian defence reform, and further implementation of the Substantial NATO-Georgia Package. In the session on Ukraine security situation in and around the country and reform of Ukrainian security and defence sector will be discussed. Particular focus at the session will be given to Russia and the threat it poses to the Alliance.
The Military Committee (MC) is NATO's highest structure of military command subordinate to the North Atlantic Council, Defence Planning Committee and Nuclear Planning Group. It takes strategic-level military decisions and forms military advice to the North Atlantic Council, the political decision-making body.
At the highest level the MC is comprised of NATO countries' Chiefs of Defence while daily activities is carried out by their military representatives. Chiefs of Defence sessions normally take place three times per year, two in Brussels and one - in one of the NATO states on a rotational basis. Last time the Chiefs of Defence met as the Military Committee was in Croatia on September 16-18, 2016.
For the Media:
On January 18 at 1.30 p.m. Lithuanian time a joint press conference by General Petr Pavel, Chairman of the NATO Military Committee (CMC), General Curtis Scaparrotti, Supreme Allied Commander, Europe (SACEUR) and General Denis Mercier, Supreme Allied Commander, Transformation (SACT) will be streamed live at http://www.nato.int/cps/en/natohq/events_67375.htm.
Photo credit: Ieva Budzeikaitė (LITHAF)
Spokesperson for the Chief of Defence of Lithuania Mindaugas Neimontas, 00370 5 278 5091, 00370 682 25359, e-mail: mindaugas.neimontas@mil.lt
