response nanatonan o briefi ng · championships and the 2004 athens olympic and paralympic games....

N A T O B R I E F I N G - M A R C H 2 0 0 5

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cooperation and

capabilities

against terrorism

Response to terrorism

briefi ngNATO and the fight

against terrorismThe 11 September 2001 terrorist attacks on New York and

Washington thrust not only the United States, but the entire NATO Alliance, into the fi ght against terrorism. Less than 24 hours after the attacks on the United States, NATO for the very fi rst time invoked Article 5, the collective defence clause of the 1949 Washington Treaty which created the Alliance.

This declaration was followed by

other fi rsts for NATO. The Alliance

conducted its fi rst active military

operations outside Europe, helping

guard the airspace of the United

States and eventually taking over

the International Security Assistance

Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan. Existing

and new NATO operations took on a

role in the fi ght against terrorism.

“In addition to operations, the Alliance enhanced

cooperation in areas ranging from intelligence

cooperation to civil emergency planning to improve its ability

to defend against terrorism.”

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In addition to operations, the Alliance

enhanced cooperation in areas rang-

ing from intelligence cooperation to

civil emergency planning to improve

its ability to defend against terrorism.

NATO also took steps to improve its

military capabilities against terrorism

and weapons of mass destruction.

NATO also cooperates with Partners

in the fi ght against terrorism. Both

the NATO-Russia Council and the

Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council

have action plans against terrorism.

On 12 September 2001, NATO

declared the terrorist attacks against

the United States the day before to

be an attack against all the then 19

NATO member countries. For the

fi rst time in NATO’s history, the Allies

invoked Article 5 of the Washington

Treaty, which states that an armed

attack against one or more NATO

member countries is considered an

attack against all.

This landmark decision was followed

by practical measures aimed at

assisting the United States. At US

request, NATO provided initial sup-

port for coalition operations against

the Taliban and al-Qaida in

Afghanistan in October 2001 and

agreed on a package of eight

measures:

• greater intelligence-sharing;

• assistance to states threatened

as a result of their support for

coalition efforts;

• increased security for facilities of

the US and other Allies on their

territory;

• backfi lling of selected Allied assets

needed to support anti-terrorist

operations;

• blanket overfl ight rights;

• access to ports and airfi elds;

• deployment of NATO naval forces

to the eastern Mediterranean;

deployment of NATO Airborne

Warning and Control System

(AWACS) aircraft to patrol US

airspace.

Response to 11 September attacks



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The mission of NATO’s Stabilisation

Force (SFOR) was successfully

terminated and a European Union

force became responsible for peace-

keeping in Bosnia and Herzegovina

on 2 December 2004. But the NATO

headquarters remaining in Sarajevo

continues to have a supporting role

in counterterrorism, alongside its

primary mission of assisting Bosnia

and Herzegovina with defence reform.

On 11 August 2003, NATO took over

command of the International Security

Assistance Force (ISAF), which was

deployed to Kabul after coalition

forces ousted the Taliban and

removed al-Qaida terrorist training

camps from Afghanistan in the

autumn of 2001. The force was cre-

ated to assist the Afghan Transitional

Authority in the maintenance of secu-

rity in Kabul and its surrounding areas

so that the Transitional Authority

and United Nations personnel can

operate in a secure environment. It is

also developing Afghan security

structures, identifying reconstruction

needs, as well as training and build-

ing up future Afghan security forces.

This has involved helping to train the

fi rst units of the new Afghan National

Army and national police, rehabilitat-

ing schools and medical facilities,

restoring water supplies, providing

agricultural technical assistance and

many other civil-military projects.

The successful completion of these

projects will help Afghanistan pro-

vide for its own security and elimi-

nate the economic conditions in

which terrorism can thrive. NATO’s

expansion of ISAF outside Kabul will

eventually spread these efforts

throughout the country.

NATO has been expanding its pres-

ence in Afghanistan via the creation

of Provincial Reconstruction Teams

(PRTs). These are teams of interna-

tional civilian and military personnel

working in Afghanistan’s provinces to

extend the authority of the central

government and to provide a safer

and more secure environment in

which reconstruction can take place.

“NATO forces in the Balkans have acted against terrorist groups with links to the al-Qaida network.”

Operating against terrorismFollowing the 11 September 2001 attacks on the United

States, NATO launched its fi rst anti-terror operation. Seven NATO Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS) aircraft were deployed to the United States on 9 October 2001 to help defend North America against further attacks. Operation Eagle

Assist lasted until 16 May 2002.

Since then, NATO AWACS has

been an integral part of the security

measures taken to protect major

events, including NATO, European

Union and other summits. Major public

events also received AWACS cover-

age, including the Euro 2004 football

championships and the 2004 Athens

Olympic and Paralympic Games.

AWACS coverage of the latter was

part of a larger Alliance operation

codenamed Distinguished Games,

which included a task force from

NATO’s multinational chemical,

biological, radiological and nuclear

protection battalion and standing

naval forces.

In addition to operations specifi cally

designed to defend against terrorist

attack, existing and new Alliance

operations took on an anti-terror role.

NATO forces in the Balkans have

acted against terrorist groups with

links to the al-Qaida network. They

continue to contribute to the cam-

paign against terrorism by focusing

on the illegal movement of people,

arms and drugs.

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As a fi rst step, NATO took command

of the previously German-led PRT in

Kunduz in January 2004. This served

as a pilot scheme for other ISAF-led

PRTs. At the Alliance’s Istanbul

Summit, which was attended by

Afghan President Hamid Karzai,

NATO leaders announced that the

Alliance was taking responsibility for

four more PRTs – the UK-led PRTs

in Mazar-e-Sharif and Maimana, the

German-led PRT in Feyzabad and

the Dutch-led PRT in Baghlan – and

would establish a logistics support

base near Mazar-e-Sharif and

temporary satellite presences

in Sar-e-Pol, Samangan and

Sherberghan. NATO also agreed to

deploy extra troops in support of the

electoral process, in the run-up to

and during the presidential election.

At the time of the election, which took

place on 9 October 2004, NATO

had more than 10,000 troops in

Afghanistan, including quick reaction

forces both in and out of theatre.

This enhanced security presence

contributed to a calm environment

for voting and helped ensure the

election’s success. In the event,

some 10.5 million people registered

to vote and 8.1 million cast ballots on

the day, 55.5 per cent of whom voted

for President Karzai.

Elections are scheduled to take

place in the course of 2005 at parlia-

mentary, provincial and local levels.

In preparation for these ballots,

NATO is continuing to expand the

number of PRTs under its command,

moving progressively westwards fol-

lowing an earlier expansion to the

north of the country. In addition, it is

planning to increase its presence

during the electoral period in a simi-

lar fashion to what it did around the

October 2004 presidential election.

Operation Active Endeavour

Operation Active Endeavour, NATO’s

maritime surveillance and escort

operation in the Mediterranean,

demonstrates the Alliance’s resolve

and ability to respond to terrorism.

It began as a direct result of the

11 September 2001 attacks on the

United States and the subsequent

declaration of Article 5 by the

Alliance. Naval forces were deployed

to the Eastern Mediterranean on

6 October 2001 to undertake a sur-

veillance mission with the objective

of detecting and deterring terrorist

activity. Keeping the Mediterranean’s

busy trade routes open and safe is

critical to NATO’s security.

The operation, which was formally

named Active Endeavour on

26 October 2001 and is directed

from Allied Naval Forces Southern

Europe in Naples, Italy, represents a

milestone for the Alliance. Together

with the deployment of Airborne

Warning and Control System

(AWACS) aircraft to the United

States, it was the fi rst time that NATO

assets had been deployed in support

of an Article 5 operation.

In March 2003, NATO expanded

Operation Active Endeavour by pro-

viding escorts through the Straits of

Gibraltar to non-military ships from

Alliance member states requesting

them. In April 2003, NATO again

expanded the mission and began

systematically boarding suspect



ships. These boardings take place

with the compliance of the ships’

masters and fl ag states in accor-

dance with international law. In

March 2004, Operation Active

Endeavour was expanded to cover

the entire Mediterranean.

The NATO Standing Naval Force

Mediterranean and Standing Naval

Force Atlantic rotate on a three-

monthly basis in Operation Active

Endeavour. Some NATO nations,

mainly Greece, Italy, Spain and

Turkey, contribute directly to the

operation with naval assets. Escort

operations in the Straits of Gibraltar

involve the use of fast patrol boats

from Northern European Allies

Denmark, Germany and Norway.

Spain also provides additional assets

in the Straits. Operation Active

Endeavour relies heavily on the

logistic support of Mediterranean

NATO Allies.

At the June 2004 Istanbul Summit,

Allied leaders decided to enhance

Operation Active Endeavour. They

also welcomed offers by Russia and

Ukraine to support the operation.

The modalities of Russian support of

Active Endeavour were fi nalised in

an exchange of letters at the meeting

of the NATO-Russia Council at the

level of foreign ministers in Brussels

on 9 December 2004.

By the end of January 2005,

Operation Active Endeavour had

Terrorism was already identifi ed as

one of the risks affecting NATO’s

security by the Alliance’s April 1999

Strategic Concept. After the

11 September 2001 attacks on the

United States, the NATO military

authorities developed the Alliance’s

Military Concept for Defence against

Terrorism, with political guidance

from the North Atlantic Council. The

Concept was endorsed by Allied

leaders at the Prague Summit on

21 November 2002.

Military Concept for Defence against TerrorismThe Concept concludes:

• NATO and its member countries

face a real threat from terrorism and

countering this threat will, in most

circumstances, be time critical.

• Nations have the primary responsi-

bility for defence of their popula-

tions and infrastructures, so the

Alliance should be prepared to

augment nations’ efforts.

• There are four roles for NATO’s

military operations for defence

against terrorism: anti-terrorism

(defensive/passive measures), con-

sequence management, counter-

terrorism (offensive/active mea-

sures), and military cooperation.

The Alliance could either lead or

support counterterrorism opera-

tions. Force protection needs to be

considered in all military operations

to defend against terrorism.

• NATO needs to be ready to conduct

military operations to engage ter-

rorist groups and their capabilities,

as and where required, as decided

by the North Atlantic Council.

hailed approximately 59,000 vessels

and conducted 80 compliant board-

ings. A total of 488 vessels had been

escorted through the Straits of

Gibraltar.

Operation Active Endeavour pro-

vided the framework for the maritime

component of NATO’s assistance to

the Greek government to ensure the

safe conduct of the 2004 Olympic

and Paralympic Games from

2 August until 30 September 2004.

Task Force Endeavour conducted

surveillance, presence and compliant

boarding operations in international

waters around the Greek peninsula

with Standing Naval Forces surface

ships, supported by maritime patrol

aircraft and submarines and in

coordination with the Hellenic Navy

and Coast Guard.

“Operation Active Endeavour demonstrates the

Alliance’s resolve and ability to respond

to terrorism.”



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Weapons of Mass Destruction Centre

at NATO Headquarters was estab-

lished in 2000 to support this Initiative.

The work of the Centre is being

enhanced in order to assist the work of

the Alliance in tackling the challenge

of weapons of mass destruction.

At the 21-22 November 2002 Prague

Summit, NATO leaders expressed

their determination to deter, defend

and protect their populations, territory

and forces from any armed attack from

abroad, including by terrorists.

They therefore agreed on the following:

• a new Military Concept for Defence

against Terrorism (see box on pre-

vious page);

• a Partnership Action Plan on

Terrorism (see section on cooper-

ating with Partners);

• fi ve nuclear, biological and chemi-

cal defence initiatives: a deployable

nuclear, biological and chemical

analytical laboratory, a nuclear, bio-

logical and chemical event

response team, a virtual centre of

excellence for nuclear, biological

and chemical weapons defence, a

NATO biological and chemical

defence stockpile, and a disease

surveillance system;

Strengthening cooperation and capabilities

The last three NATO Summits took measures to enhance Allied capabilities to fi ght terrorism and increased cooperation with

Partners in this area.

At the April 1999 Washington Summit,

NATO launched a Weapons of Mass

Destruction Initiative to address the

risks posed by the proliferation of such

weapons and their means of delivery.

The Initiative is designed to promote

understanding of weapons of mass

destruction issues, develop ways of

responding to them, improve intelli-

gence and information sharing, and

enhance existing Allied programmes

that increase military readiness to

operate in a weapons of mass destruc-

tion environment and counter threats

posed by these weapons. The

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• protection of civilian populations,

including a Civil Emergency

Planning Action Plan (see section

on cooperating with Partners);

• missile defence: Allies are examin-

ing options for addressing the

increasing missile threat to Alliance

territory, forces and population cen-

tres in an effective and effi cient way

through an appropriate mix of politi-

cal and defence efforts, along with

deterrence;

• cyber-defence: efforts are under-

way within the Alliance to better

protect against and prepare for a

possible disruption of NATO and

national critical infrastructure

assets, including information and

communications systems;

• cooperation with other international

organisations (see separate sec-

tion);

• improved intelligence sharing.

In addition, they decided to create the

NATO Response Force, streamline

the military command structure and

launch the Prague Capabilities

Commitment, which are preparing the

Alliance better to face new challenges,

including terrorism.

The NATO Response Force is a rap-

idly deployable multinational unit made

up of land, air, maritime and special

forces components. Numbering over

20,000 troops when it reaches its full

operational capability in October

2006, it will be able to start to deploy

after fi ve days’ notice and sustain itself

for operations lasting 30 days or lon-

ger if resupplied. The NATO Response

Force will be able to deploy worldwide,

as and when decided by the North

Atlantic Council. Possible missions

range from non-combatant evacua-

tion missions to combat operations,

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At the 28-29 June 2004 Istanbul

Summit, NATO leaders approved an

enhanced set of measures to

strengthen the Alliance’s contribution

to the fi ght against terrorism. They

agreed to improve intelligence shar-

ing through a review of current intel-

ligence structures at NATO and

through the Terrorist Threat Intelli-

gence Unit at NATO Headquarters in

Brussels. This Unit, which was cre-

ated after the terrorist attacks against

the United States on 11 September

2001, has now become permanent

and will analyse general terrorist

threats, as well as those more spe-

cifi cally aimed at NATO.

The enhanced package of anti-

terrorist measures includes a greater

ability to respond quickly to requests

by member countries to help deal

with terrorist threats or the conse-

quences of terrorist attacks. NATO’s

Airborne Warning and Control

System (AWACS) aircraft and multi-

national chemical, biological, radio-

logical and nuclear defence battalion

can be made available to any

member country requesting such

assistance.

The enhanced package includes a

work programme prepared by

NATO’s Conference of National

Armaments Directors, procurement

chiefs of NATO member countries,

during their meeting in May 2004 to

develop new, advanced technologies

to defend against terrorist attack.

This work programme is focusing on

nine areas:

• Countering improvised explosive

devices, such as car and road-side

bombs, through their detection and

destruction or neutralisation. This

effort is led by Spain and is making

use of the expertise of industries in

several member countries and

through the NATO Industrial

Advisory Group.

• Reducing the vulnerability of wide-

body civilian and military aircraft to

man-portable air defence missiles.

On-going work is focused on techni-

cal, tactical and training counter-

measures, while a strategy is being

developed in cooperation with the

civil aviation authorities.

• Reducing the vulnerability of helicop-

ters to rocket-propelled grenades.

Bulgaria has assumed the lead for

this effort, which is currently focused

on the detection of ground attacks

and protection against them, includ-

ing with active countermeasures.

• Protecting harbours and ships from

explosive-packed speedboats and

underwater divers using sensor-

nets, electro-optical detectors, rapid

reaction capabilities and unmanned

underwater vehicles. Italy is leading

this effort.

• Detection, protection and defeat of

chemical, biological, radiological,

and nuclear weapons. France is

the lead nation in this effort,

which has defensive (detection,

protection, decontamination) as well

as offensive (stand-off precision

strikes) objectives.

• Explosive ordnance disposal, with

the objective of preventing existing

stockpiles of munitions from falling

into the hands of terrorists and of

improving NATO’s technological and

operational capabilities to dispose of

such stockpiles. Slovakia is the lead

nation, supported by Norway.

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“At the 28-29 June 2004 Istanbul Summit,

NATO leaders approved an enhanced set of

measures to strengthen the Alliance’s

contribution to the fi ght against terrorism.”

• Precision airdrop technology for

special operations forces and their

equipment. France is the lead

nation for improving this capability

and will host a demonstration of the

latest technologies in spring 2005.

• Intelligence, surveillance, recon-

naissance and target acquisition of

terrorists, with the goal of develop-

ing improved tools for early warning

identifi cation of terrorists and their

activities.

• Technologies to defend against

mortar attacks. Triggered by the

increasing number of terrorist mor-

tar attacks, this item was initiated by

the Netherlands, the lead nation in

this effort, and added to the list by

National Armament Directors dur-

ing their meeting in November

2004. The aim is to employ new and

future technologies to improve the

abilities of Allied forces to defend

against mortar attacks.

NATO has appointed a Counter-

terrorism Technology Coordinator and

established a special Counterterrorism

Technology Unit within its Defence

Investment Division to lead and

coordinate efforts in these nine areas.

Due to the nature of the terrorist threat,

most projects launched under the work

programme are focused on existing or

new technologies that can be fi elded in

the near future.

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The fi ght against terrorism has become a key focus of NATO’s cooperation with Partners in the framework

of the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council as well as the NATO-Russia Council. The Alliance and Ukraine also pursue joint activities relevant to the fi ght against terrorism. It is also one of the areas being offered by the Alliance for cooperation with countries in North Africa and the Middle East.

months following the attacks led to

agreement on a joint declaration on

“NATO-Russia Relations: A New

Quality”, signed by Russian and Allied

heads of state and government in Rome

on 28 May 2002, which established the

current NATO-Russia Council.

The joint declaration identifi es terrorism

as one of several areas for consultation

and cooperation between NATO and

Russia. This cooperation has taken the

form of regular exchanges of informa-

tion, in-depth consultation, joint threat

assessments, civil emergency planning

for terrorist attacks, and exploring the

role of the military in combating terror-

ism. NATO Allies and Russia also coop-

erate in areas indirectly related to

terrorism, such as border control,

non-proliferation of weapons of mass

destruction, airspace management and

nuclear safety.

Cooperating with Partners

“Th e fi ght against terrorism has become a key focus of NATO’s cooperation with Partners in the framework of the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council as well as the NATO Russia Council”

On 12 September 2001, the Euro-

Atlantic Partnership Council con-

demned the attacks on New York and

Washington the previous day and

offered the support of all 46 members to

the United States. This was followed the

next day by a similar condemnation

by the NATO-Russia Permanent

Joint Council.

The 11 September attacks on the United

States and the common challenge of

terrorism led to a new quality in NATO-

Russian cooperation. High-level con-

tacts between NATO and Russia in the

On 7 September 2004, following the

series of terrorist attacks on the Russian

Federation, the NATO-Russia Council

met in extraordinary session. The

Council strongly condemned the hor-

rendous terrorist acts which culminated



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“NATO Allies and Partners are also working together to improve civil preparedness against, and manage the consequences of, possible terrorist attacks.”

in the murder of hundreds of children

and other civilians in Beslan, North

Ossetia. NATO-Russia Council ambas-

sadors also declared their determination

to strengthen and intensify common

efforts to fi ght the scourge of terrorism,

including through the development, as a

matter of priority, of an action plan to

coordinate practical cooperation under

the NATO-Russia Council.

NATO and Russian foreign ministers

approved the action plan at their

9 December 2004 NATO-Russia

Council meeting in Brussels. The plan

aims to enhance Allied and Russian

capabilities to act individually or jointly in

preventing terrorism, combating terrorist

activities, and managing the conse-

quences of terrorist acts.

The Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council’s

Partnership Action Plan against Terror-

ism, which was launched by NATO’s

November 2002 Prague Summit and is

updated annually, is the main platform

for joint efforts by Allies and Partners in

the fi ght against terrorism. It provides a

framework for cooperation and the shar-

ing of expertise in this area through

political consultation and practical

measures. It is leading to improved intel-

ligence sharing and cooperation in

areas such as border security, counter-

terrorism training and exercises, and the

development of capabilities for defence

against terrorist attack or for dealing with

the consequences of such an attack. It

also promotes work to ensure the physi-

cal security and safe destruction of sur-

plus munitions and small arms and light

weapons, such as shoulder-fi red rocket

and grenade launchers.

A programme in support of collaboration

between scientists working in NATO and

Partner or Mediterranean Dialogue coun-

tries, known as the Security Through

Science programme, is also engaged in

the exchange of scientifi c and technologi-

cal knowledge on topics relevant to the

fi ght against terrorism. Topics under con-

sideration include chemical, biological,

radiological or nuclear threats, explosives

detection, energy security, information

security, social and psychological conse-

quences of terrorism, and analysing the

roots of terrorism.

NATO Allies and Partners are also

working together to improve civil pre-

paredness against, and manage the

consequences of, possible terrorist

attacks with chemical, biological and

radiological agents. As a fi rst step, they

have established an inventory of

national civil and military capabilities

that could be made available to assist

stricken nations.

One of the areas of cooperation

covered by NATO’s reinforced

Mediterranean Dialogue with Algeria,

Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Mauritania,

Morocco and Tunisia is contributing to

the fi ght against terrorism. Fighting

terrorism is also part of the Alliance’s

Istanbul Cooperation Initiative aimed

at the broader Middle East.


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NATO Briefi ngs address topical Alliance issues. They are published under the authority of the Secretary General and do not necessarily refl ect offi cial opinion or policy of member governments or of NATO.

NATO Public Diplomacy Division, 1110 Brussels - Belgium, web site: www.nato.int, e-mail: [email protected]

NATO is cooperating with other international organisations so information is shared and appropriate action taken

more effectively in the fi ght against terrorism.

The Euro-Atlantic Disaster Response

Coordination Centre works closely

with the UN agencies that play

a leading role in responding to inter-

national disasters and in conse-

quence management – the UN Offi ce

for the Coordination of Humanitarian

Affairs and the Organisation for the

Prohibition of Chemical Weapons –

and other organisations.

Cooperating with other international organisations

N uNATO contributesNATO contributesNATO contributes“NATO contributes“NATO ib“NATO bactively to the work of

the United Nations Counterterrorism

Committee”

The Alliance and the European

Union have exchanged civil emer-

gency planning inventories. NATO

contributes actively to the work of the

United Nations Counterterrorism

Committee. There are regular con-

sultations between the Alliance and

the Organization for Security and

Cooperation in Europe. NATO works

together with Eurocontrol, the

International Civil Aviation

Organization and the International

Air Transport Association to improve

civil-military coordination of air

traffi c control.

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