NATO - North Atlantic Treaty Organisation

Combined Joint Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Defence Task Force

The Alliance’s multinational CBRN defence capability

NATO today faces a whole range of complex challenges and threats to its security. Present and future security challenges require the Alliance to be prepared to protect and defend against threats emanating from both state and non-state actors.

• Combined Joint CBRN Defence Task Force

  The NATO Combined Joint Chemical, Biological Radiological, Nuclear (CBRN) Defence Task Force which consist of CBRN Joint Assessment Team (JAT) and CBRN Defence Battalion is a NATO body specifically trained and equipped to deal with CBRN events and/or attacks against NATO populations, territory or forces.

  The Battalion and the CBRN JAT, created in 2003 and declared operational the following year, is a multi-national, multi-functional team, able to deploy quickly to participate in the full spectrum of NATO operations.

  The Battalion's mission is unique in that it is not only trained for armed conflicts, but is also able to be deployed to crisis situations such as natural disasters and industrial accidents, including those involving hazardous material.  The Combined Joint CBRN Defence Task Force can also be deployed in order to support the protection of High Visibility Events (HVE) such as Olympic games or NATO summits.

• Authority, tasks and responsibilities

  The realization of the Combined Joint CBRN Defence Task Force fulfils two of the capability commitments made by Allies at the 2002 Prague Summit: a Prototype Deployable Nuclear, Biological and Chemical (NBC) Analytical Laboratory and a Prototype NBC Event Response Team. These capabilities greatly enhance the Alliance’s defence against WMD.

  The Battalion’s mission is to provide a rapidly-deployable and credible CBRN defence capability in order to maintain NATO’s freedom of action and operational effectiveness in a CBRN threat environment.

  The CBRN Battalion may be used to provide military assistance to civil authorities when authorised by the North Atlantic Council, the Alliance’s principal political decision-making body. For example, they played a key planning role during the 2004 Summer Olympics in Greece, and the 2004 Istanbul Summit, where they supported any CBRN-related contingency operations.

  The CBRN Defence Battalion is capable of conducting the following tasks:

  • CBRN reconnaissance and monitoring operations;
  • Sampling and Identification of Biological, Chemical, and Radiological agents (SIBCRA);
  • Biological detection and monitoring operations;
  • Provide CBRN assessments and advice to NATO commanders;
  • CBRN hazard management operations, such as decontamination.

• Contributors to the Defence Task Force

  Some 21 NATO countries contribute to the Combined Joint CBRN Defence Task Force on a voluntary basis. National commitments vary depending on the rotation, but there are usually between 8-10 nations involved per rotation.

  For the very first time a non-NATO member nation participated in 2010.  Ukraine contributed a decontamination platoon after having accomplished a NATO evaluation and certification process very successfully.

• How does it work in practice?

  The CBRN Joint Assessment Team and CBRN Battalion fall under the strategic command of the Supreme Allied Commander Europe (SACEUR). Operational control is delegated to a subordinate command as required.

  NATO’s Allied Command Transformation provides evaluation standards, supports training and determines future NBC defence requirements and develops capabilities.

  The Battalion level organization is composed of personnel from a number of NATO countries, on standby for a period of six months, in future twelve months (termed a ‘rotation’). Like the NATO Response Force (NRF), dedicated personnel are based in their countries, coming together for training and deployment.

  A voluntary lead country is identified for each rotation. The lead country hosts the CBRN Joint Assessement Team and Battalion headquarters, responsible for command and control arrangements, maintaining standard operational procedures, sustaining readiness levels and for planning and conducting training. Contributing countries supply functional capabilities. This includes providing requisite troops, equipment and logistical support in accordance with mission requirementsThe Defence Task Force is composed of separate but complimentary components, which can be deployed in different stages and different combinations to suit each mission.

  The components are:

  • Joint Assessment Team. Comprised of specialists that provide CBRN-related advice and support;
  • Headquarters Command and Control. Tailored command and control capabilities with a robust communications package to support assigned and attached organizations;
  • Reconnaissance. Designed to provide route, area and point detection and identification of agents;
  • Decontamination. Maintains the capability to decontaminate personnel and equipment;
  • Deployable Analytical CBRN Laboratories. Designed to provide expert sampling, analysis, and scientific advice to support operational commanders.

  The Battalion has a close relationship with the NATO Response Force (NRF). While it can be deployed independently, it is consistent and in complimentarity with the NATO Response Force. Its strength is included within the NRF force structure, and it can deploy within 5 to 30 days. 

• Evolution

  Following the agreement at the 2002 Prague Summit to enhance the Alliance’s defence capabilities against weapons of mass destruction, the North Atlantic Council, in June 2003, decided to form a Multinational CBRN Defence Battalion and Joint Assessment Team.

  The structure of the Battalion was established at a planning conference on 17-18 September 2003. The following month, on 28 October 2003, a force generation conference was held at Supreme Headquarters Allied Command Europe. On 18-21 November 2003, a follow-up conference was held in the Czech Republic, the first volunteer lead country.

  The Battalion reached its initial operational capability on 1 December 2003. Full operational capability was achieved on 28 June 2004 as declared by SACEUR at the Istanbul Summit, and responsibility was transferred into the strategic command of Allied Command Operations. From then on, the Battalion was included in the six-month rotation system of the NRF.  The concept of operations and capability requirements of the Battalion are currently being reviewed to incorporate lessons learned from previous NRF cycles and operational deployments.