NATO’s highest military authorities meet at NATO HQ, Brussels
<p>NATO's Military Committee met at NATO Headquarters on 16 and 17 November 2004 for one of two meetings it holds every year at the level of Chiefs of Defence Staff. </p>
NATO's Military Committee met at NATO Headquarters on 16 and 17 November 2004 for one of two meetings it holds every year at the level of Chiefs of Defence Staff.
Over the two days, it met in different configurations to push forward NATO's transformation and military cooperation to deal with current security challenges. This included meetings with representatives of partner countries, and with Russia and Ukraine.
A focus on the Mediterranean
A highlight of the sessions was the first formal meeting with the Chiefs of Defence, or their representatives, from NATO's seven Mediterranean Dialogue countries: Algeria, Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Mauritania, Morocco and Tunisia.
This meeting follows the June 2004 Istanbul Summit, where NATO Heads of State and Government agreed to deepen relations with the Alliance's partners in the Mediterranean.
Discussions focussed on the necessity for efficient counter-terrorist intelligence sharing. It was agreed to initiate meetings between intelligence experts to look at ways of broadening cooperation. NATO is now also working on measures to enable participation by non-NATO nations, including the Mediterranean partners, in NATO's naval counter-terrorist operation in the Mediterranean, Active Endeavour.
The Chiefs of Defence also proceeded with the election of a new Chairman, the successor to General Harald Kujat. Canada received the majority vote and the Canadian Chief of Defence, General Raymond Henault, will take over the position from mid 2005. The precise handover date will be decided between the outgoing and incoming Chairmen.
Discussions of the Military Committee are held to assist and give military advice to NATO's top decision-making civilian bodies and provide guidance to NATO's two strategic commands.