31 October 2003

NATO to Conduct Exercise in Istanbul Nov. 3-18

Allied Action 2003 practices multinational crisis response operations

Over 2,000 personnel from NATO, Partner and Partner-invitee countries will participate in a military exercise in Istanbul November 3-18.

Called "Allied Action 2003" (AA 03), the exercise will give participants the opportunity to practice procedures for planning and mounting a multinational operation in accordance with the Combined Joint Task Force (CJTF) concept, involving crisis response activities in fictitious countries beyond Alliance territory.

The last NATO exercise in the series, named Allied Effort 2001, took place in Poland.

Following is a NATO press advisory:

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NATO Press Advisory
31-Oct-2003

EXERCISE ALLIED ACTION 2003 - NATO EXERCISES A COMBINED JOINT TASK FORCE IN TURKEY

ALLIED ACTION 2003 (AA 03), A NATO Command Post Exercise will take place in Istanbul, Turkey, from 03--18 November 2003. AA 03 will be conducted by Regional Headquarters Allied Forces North Europe (RHQ AFNORTH). This exercise is designed to validate the role of RHQ AFNORTH as an operational level headquarters, capable of launching a fully deployable Combined Joint Task Force CJTF).

Over 2000 personnel will participate from supporting NATO Headquarters and from the following nations:

17 NATO member nations: Belgium, Canada, the Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Turkey, the United Kingdom and the United States of America;

6 Invitee Partner nations: Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania and Slovenia;

10 Partner nations: Austria, Azerbaijan, Finland, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia(1), Georgia, Ireland, Sweden, Switzerland, Ukraine and Uzbekistan.

The participants will practise the procedures for planning and mounting a multinational operation, which includes all services in accordance with the CJTF concept. The exercise scenario portrays a crisis response operation in fictitious countries beyond Alliance territory.

The exercise is one of a series started in 1999, designed to practise and validate NATO concepts and doctrine to meet the challenges of possible future operations. The last NATO exercise in the series, named Allied Effort 2001, took place in Poland, in NATO's Northern region. Preparation for this exercise started over 18 months ago. This exercise is an important step in the implementation process of the CJTF concept, which will provide the Alliance with a vital tool for crisis management in the 21st century.

From 15 October 2003, RHQ AFNORTH is also responsible for the further development of NATO's new High Readiness Joint and Combined Force: NATO Response Force (NRF).

The Supreme Allied Commander Europe (SACEUR) is the Officer Scheduling the Exercise and the Commander-in-Chief North Europe (CINCNORTH) is the Officer Conducting the Exercise.

Note for the editor:

Media questions should be addressed to HQ AFNORTH Public Information Office, tel +31 (0)45 526 2409, fax +31 (0)45 526 3095, e-mail: pio@afnorth.nato.int

Media visiting from outside Turkey are encouraged to plan their visits on the 12 Nov., which will be a media-day. Further information will also be found on www.afnorth.nato.int

(1)Turkey recognises the Republic of Macedonia with its constitutional name.

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