The Military Committee Conference is a unique gathering of Chiefs of Defence who come together once a year outside NATO Headquarters to discuss some of the challenging issues facing the Alliance.

The meeting will be chaired by General Knud Bartels, Chairman of NATO’s Military Committee. Ongoing Allied operations in Afghanistan and in the Western Balkans will form part of the agenda of the 28 Chiefs of Defence. Discussions will also cover how NATO can transform itself in order to make the best use of available resources, including through the Connected Forces Initiative, Smart Defence projects and NATO exercises and training activities.

General Knud Bartels will be supported in each session by General Philip Breedlove (Supreme Allied Commander, Europe) and General Jean-Paul Paloméros (Supreme Allied Commander, Transformation). Also attending is General Joseph Dunford, Commander of NATO’s International Security Assistance Force (ISAF), who will update participants on the latest progress in Afghanistan. Wider debates will be stimulated by the presence of retired General James Mattis, a former commander of United States Central Command and Supreme Allied Commander, Transformation.

The Military Committee meets three times a year at the level of Chiefs of Defence to discuss NATO operations and missions and provide the North Atlantic Council with consensus-based military advice on how the Alliance can best meet the global security challenges. Two of these meetings occur at NATO Headquarters in Brussels and one is hosted by a NATO member country, on a rotational basis.

Source: nato.int