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Aug 12 2014

GM signs Joint Partnership statement with LANDCOM


On 5 August, the NCI Agency General Manager, Mr Koen Gijsbers visited Allied Land Command Izmir (LANDCOM), and during the visit signed a joint partnership statement with LANDCOM Commander LGEN Frederick “Ben” Hodges. In the spirit of cooperation, LANDCOM and the NCI Agency jointly declared their continued commitment to a Strategic Partnership in support of the NATO First Solution for the NATO Force Structure (NFS) in the context of the NATO Response Force for NATO Forces 2020. The full text of the joint statement can be requested by Nations through the Demand Management Directorate.

The partnership with LANDCOM, under the Command of LGEN Hodges, has flourished in the last year as part of the mutual goal of supporting the NFS in its preparations for NATO Response Force (NRF) rotations.

LANDCOM forms the critical link between the NATO Command Structure and the Land Forces of the NFS, providing a framework for training, readiness, interoperability, and standardization, while the NCI Agency, as Implementation Authority, contributes to the Partnership through technical expertise, proven project and programme management skills, operational experience and the flexibility that comes with customer funding. Together LANDCOM and NCI Agency strive to further develop the concept of NATO First Solution, which was first conceived through a partnership between the NCI Agency and The First German Netherlands Corps and taken forward through a partnership with the NATO Rapid Deployable Corps in Italy.

GM signs Joint Partnership statement with LANDCOM

The aim of the NATO First Solution is to maximise the re-use of capabilities that NATO develops under common funding, using the Agency´s comprehensive C4ISR approach to NATO Forces 2020 to maximise synergies between common and nationally funded programs and services on a bilateral or multilateral basis. The current focus of this activity is the Graduated Readiness Forces (Land), but the principle will be proposed to the other components of the NFS and could be applied more broadly to underpin the NATO First Policy already implemented by some NATO Nations, including the United Kingdom and the Netherlands.

The main benefits for Nations or Organisations in implementing the NATO First Solution are:
• Guaranteed interoperability with the NATO Command Structure through seamless integration with existing NATO capabilities.
• Cost effectiveness by leveraging existing common funded capabilities and avoiding redevelopment cost.
• Reduced complexity of the implemented solutions, by avoiding the implementation, support and training on various systems delivering similar capabilities.
• Train as you fight: Using the same infrastructure and applications during training and exercises as those used in operational theatres.