NATO MULTIMEDIA ACCOUNT

Download NATO’s broadcast-quality video content free of charge

Log in

No account?

Create an account

Forgot your password?

Reset password

NATO MULTIMEDIA ACCOUNT

Access NATO’s broadcast-quality video content free of charge

Create an account

First name*

Family name*

Email address*

Password*

Repeat password*

Occupation

Nationality

I accept the Privacy Policy and Terms of Service.

Chair of the Military Committee

Updated: 15 September 2025

The Chair of the Military Committee is NATO’s senior military officer, by virtue of being the principal military adviser to the Secretary General and the conduit through which consensus-based advice from the Chiefs of Defence of all NATO member countries is brought forward to the political decision-making bodies of NATO.

The Chair is NATO’s senior military officer and the senior military spokesperson for the Alliance on all military matters.
They are the principal military adviser to the Secretary General.
They are the conduit through which advice from the Chiefs of Defence of all NATO member countries is presented to the political decision-making bodies and guidance and directives are issued to the Strategic Commanders (Supreme Allied Commander Europe and Supreme Allied Commander Transformation) and the Director General of the International Military Staff.
They also direct the Military Committee (NATO’s highest military authority), act on its behalf and is the Committee’s spokesperson and representative.
The current Chair is Admiral Giuseppe Cavo Dragone. He took up his functions on 17 January 2025.

Tasks and responsibilities

The Chair’s authority stems from the Military Committee, to which they are responsible in the performance of the duties that come with the position.

They chair all meetings of the Military Committee and, in their absence, the Deputy Chair of the Military Committee takes the chair.

The Chair of the Military Committee is both its spokesperson and representative. They act on behalf of the Committee in issuing the necessary directives and guidance both to the Director General of the International Military Staff and to NATO’s Strategic Commanders. They represent the Military Committee at the North Atlantic Council (NATO’s highest political decision-making body), and other high-level political meetings, such as the Nuclear Planning Group, providing consensus-based advice on military matters when required.

By virtue of their appointment, the Chair of the Committee also has an important public role and is the senior military spokesperson for the Alliance. They undertake official visits and representational duties on behalf of the Committee, meeting with government officials and senior military officers in both NATO countries and in countries with which NATO is developing closer contacts in the framework of formal partnerships, for instance the Partnership for Peace programme and the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council, and with non-NATO troop-contributing countries to NATO operations.

They are also the Chair of the Academic Advisory Board of the NATO Defense College.

Selection process and mandate

The Chair of the Military Committee is elected from among the NATO Chiefs of Defence and appointed for a three-year term of office. They must have served as Chief of defence – or an equivalent capacity – in their own country and is traditionally a non-US officer of four-star rank or national equivalent.