NATO was to launch its elite rapid-reaction force yesterday, a prototype unit that will eventually become a 20,000-member force able to deploy in short notice anywhere in the world.
A ceremony at NATO's northern command in the Dutch city of Brunssum was planned to inaugurate an initial core of 6,000 troops backed by naval and air power to serve as a prototype for the NATO Response Force.
The inauguration marks an important departure for the 19-member alliance, which has never in its 54-year history had a multinational military unit combining air, land and sea power for use anywhere in the world on short notice. For most of its existence NATO focused on military threats to the European continent.
A year ago, US Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld first proposed setting up the force to spearhead a transformation of the alliance to tackle new global threats.
The full force is to become fully operational in October 2006 with 20,000 troops able to deploy within five to 30 days to deal with operations ranging from evacuations and peacekeeping to counterterrorism or high-intensity combat.
"That Response Force [will] have capabilities that are agile, swift and lethal, so that this wonderful alliance of ours can respond quickly and effectively to rapidly unfolding crises," Rumsfeld said last week at a meeting of allied defense ministers in Colorado.
Although allied nations have moved swiftly to set up the force, NATO officials say some now need to streamline political procedures to prevent delays in deploying the force. They are particularly concerned by rules in Germany, Hungary, the Netherlands and Turkey, which need parliamentary approval for sending troops into action.
The new force will not be a standing unit, but rather a pool of elite troops trained to work together and ready to respond immediately to a NATO mobilization order. Units from national forces will move in and out of the force in six-month rotations.
Turkey will provide the bulk of the ground troops in the initial force, under a Turkish general. The infantry will be supported by specialists in handling nuclear, biological and chemical weapons, military police, engineers and transport helicopters.
A Spanish admiral will command the NATO Respond Force's naval task force, which will include attack helicopters, frigates, a submarine and patrol air force.
Officials said NATO's Northern Air Command at the Ramstein base in Germany will run the prototype air component. It will comprise combat, transport and reconnaissance planes. When fully operational, the force should be able to fly 200 combat sorties a day.
The prototype force will hold its first maneuvers next month in Turkey.
Rumsfeld proposed creating the force when he met in Poland last year with other NATO defense ministers. The idea was immediately backed by the allies, who saw the need to transform the old Cold War alliance into one with global reach.
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