Previous IFPA-Fletcher Conferences

National Security Strategy and Policy:
Planning for and Responding to Threats to the U.S. Homeland

October 28-29, 2004
Ronald Reagan Building
and International Trade Center
Washington, D.C.

E.C. Whiteside, Head, Weapons of Mass
Destruction Center, NATO

Introduction By: Ambassador Stephen W. Bosworth

E.C. Whiteside: Good morning. I’m honored to be at the IFPA-Fletcher conference. I’m a Canadian, working at NATO Headquarters as a member of the Secretary General’s International Staff.

I will quote President Abraham Lincoln who said that it is better to be silent and be thought a fool than to speak up and remove all doubt. [Laughter] I’m putting myself in the unenviable situation of speaking up and removing some doubt at least.

My theme this morning is that of strengthening NATO and building upon the Alliance in the context of transatlantic homeland security. Assistant Secretary McHale yesterday said something which I believe is very important, and this will be the specific focus for my talk - “homeland defense begins overseas”, he said, “and there is only one battle space and that is a global battle space.’’ My initial question, therefore, is the following: what is the role of a regional alliance in the war on terror, and what is the contribution that NATO can make towards our common goal for homeland security in each of our respective nations?

The Alliance remains fully committed to the collective defense of our populations, territory and forces. Transatlantic cooperation is essential in defending our values and meeting common threats and challenges, from wherever they may come. NATO is an Alliance of 26 Allies, but I’m going to speak of the Alliance today in its broader partnership context - some 45 countries, including Russia, Ukraine, countries of the Caucuses and the Balkans, and Central Asia. I shall also make reference to NATO’s Mediterranean Dialogue that has greatly contributed to building confidence and cooperation between the Alliance and its Mediterranean partners. In the current security environment there are greater opportunities for effective cooperation with the Mediterranean Dialogue partners. NATO has also decided to offer cooperation to the broader Middle East region by launching the “Istanbul Cooperation Initiative”, starting with the countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council, to foster mutually beneficial bilateral relationships and thus enhance security and stability.

The Alliance strongly condemns terrorism, whatever its motivations or manifestations, and NATO members have stated that they will fight it together as long as necessary.

NATO Allies have been attacked by terrorists. Continuing terrorist acts, including in Istanbul last year and in Madrid in March 2004, have shown the acute threat which terrorism continues to pose around the world. Defense against terrorism may include activities by NATO’s military forces, based on decisions by the North Atlantic Council, to deter, disrupt, defend and protect against terrorist attacks, or threat of attacks, directed from abroad, against populations, territory, infrastructure and forces of any member state, including by acting against these terrorists and those who harbor them.

The Allies have felt and shared the grief of a community that is a victim of terrorism. What is the Alliance doing now about terrorism? What is the Alliance doing about the potential use of weapons of mass destruction by non-state actors?

A recent NATO study indicates that there has been growth in terrorism – in absolute numbers - around the world over the last 30 years. This slide shows the detailed figures. More disconcerting, several studies indicate that there are increasingly favorable attitudes in several states and communities towards terrorism as a way of reaching political objectives. Suicide bombings have occurred in more than 20 countries; a number of these countries are NATO partners. In terms of geographic distribution, you see in this slide that the United States, hardest hit, is but one of a number of countries around the world that have had to face the scourge of suicide attacks.

Now, in this next slide, you see the classic definition - a suicide bombing is a bomb attack on people or property - and we’ve become used to seeing small numbers of people being killed. However, the most destructive suicide bombing in history happened in this country in September 200 1, and that has changed significantly the scale of the problem. NATO nations and NATO military staffs are now grappling with the fact that suicide bombings can occur on a hitherto unimagined scale.

We must ask ourselves the question - what if terrorists were able to develop an attack with WMD? We heard speakers talk about some of the aspects of this problem yesterday.

I will examine one aspect of the international community’s response to this concern, one simple question - what is the Alliance doing - with strong US leadership - on the issue of terrorism and weapons of mass destruction?

First of all, NATO’s maritime surveillance and escort operation, Operation Active Endeavor, demonstrates the Alliance’s resolve and ability to respond to terrorism. Work is underway to further enhance its contribution to the fight against terrorism, including through the contributory support of partner countries, including the Mediterranean Dialogue countries. Operation Active Endeavor, which you see illustrated on this slide, started in autumn 2001 to support the Alliance’s broad antiterrorism goals.

We have improved intelligence sharing between our nations, including through a new Terrorist Threat Intelligence Unit. NATO has provided assistance to protect selected major events, including with NATO Airborne Early Warning and Control Aircraft.

I’d like to talk briefly about what the Alliance is and is not doing in Iraq. At the Istanbul Summit in 2004, NATO Heads of State and Government agreed to assist Iraq with the training of its security forces, something which is important as that country assumes the responsibility for its own security. On the 14th of September, the interim Iraqi president visited NATO, and as you see in this picture, with the Secretary General, welcomed the Alliance’s assistance to Iraq and called for further assistance on an urgent basis.

So what are we doing to enhance NATO assistance to Iraq? The NATO effort will focus on training. This is a distinct mission, under the political control of NATO’s North Atlantic Council, but it will work closely with the
U.S.-led Multinational Force on the ground. The aims are not combat aims. They are training, equipping and technical assistance. The NATO training task in Iraq is already under way. There are NATO military personnel training and mentoring Iraqi forces, and further NATO decisions are expected soon.

I’m going to change perspectives with one click of a computer button and move to Afghanistan. The Alliance has continued robust efforts to help create conditions in which terrorism cannot flourish. NATO’s aim is to assist in the emergence of a secure and stable Afghanistan, with a broad-based, gender sensitive, multi-ethnic and full representative government, integrated into the international community and cooperating with its neighbors. NATO took over control of the International Security Assistance Force in August 2003. ISAF’s role is to assist the Government in Afghanistan and the international community in maintaining security within the force’s area of operations. There are now some 7,000 soldiers, sailors and airmen from 35 NATO and non-NATO nations. ISAF support, starting in 2003, moved beyond Kabul.

Provincial reconstruction teams have been set up. You can see on this slide that NATO is responsible for a number of them; the US continues to bear the major burden, particularly in the southeast. Discussions are under way within the Alliance, however, to move forward on a more robust support to the provincial reconstruction concept. It has sometimes been difficult to find resources for these provincial reconstruction teams. The Secretary General of NATO has publicly noted with some frustration that sometimes the words of political commitment require many months before actual deeds and equipment appear. In consultation with the Afghan authorities, the Alliance will continue to expand ISAF in stages throughout Afghanistan, through the establishment by lead nations of additional PRTs.

In Afghanistan, a number of nations - indicated on this slide - have provided direct and very substantial support to the presidential election. The election took place in October. This was, first and foremost, a victory for the Afghan people. The ISM was a key part of that overall success. ISAF will continue its important mission.

I'm going to conclude by passing in quick review recent defense-related initiatives to deal with the real problems of WMD.

There are five CBRN - chemical/biological/radiological/nuclear - defense initiatives launched only two years ago within the Alliance that have now come to fruition.

The first is to get serious about a deployable, analytical capability - of which you see the details on this slide. All of our nations have capabilities; very few have deployable capabilities. NATO had none. Within the last two years, we have fielded a deployable capability, ready to go anywhere, any time.

Secondly, as you see in this slide, we got serious about joint assessment teams, the capability to advise NATO commanders in the field on means of mitigating the effects of an NBC effect. “Surely,” you will ask, “this is something you’ve had for the last several decades”; the answer is no, we did not, this is a recent initiative.

Third, we’re organizing a virtual stockpile to bring together all the pharmaceutical and medical capabilities of the various Allies so that they can be drawn upon in time of crisis, based on presumption of availability and reimbursement of costs.

Fourth, we’re developing interoperability standards for disease surveillance, something that we’ve heard about earlier in this conference. It’s very important to alert people of biological outbreak as quickly as possible. This slide shows some of the important details in this particular project.

Fifth, we’re increasing overall training and understanding of the challenges related to WMD proliferation. Ambassadors now have the opportunity once a year to participate in a NAC WMD seminar. We are encouraging all Allies to increase the overall level of training and workshops in this important area.

All of these five capabilities have been brought together in a multinational CBRN defense battalion, which reached full operational capability this year for the first time, and deployed to Athens to support the Olympics.

I’d like to close my few short minutes by talking about the other defense capability that we heard from General Obering yesterday, and that is missile defense.

I’m not going to talk about the physics of missile intercepts, but will mention something about the overall Alliance objectives and activities.

NATO has a number of theater missile defense systems being developed, and we’ve made a decision that NATO will acquire theater missile defense for potential use in areas of the world where NATO troops are deployed.

Second, we have undertaken a major industrial feasibility study to look at broader missile defense, the type of broader missile defense that could potentially counter longer-range developments such as North Korean missile programs. No decisions whatsoever has been made within the Alliance but NATO members are examining options for addressing the increasing missile threat to Alliance territory, forces and population centers through an appropriate mix of political and defense efforts, along with deterrence.

Third, we’re working with Russia. Interestingly enough, Russia has some of the best theater missile defense technology in the world. We’re engaged in co-operation with that country, with a very active exchange of information that will enhance mutual understanding of interoperability possibilities.

I’d like to close now with a final slide on terrorism and WMD. Based on a combination of trends in non-state actors’ capabilities and motivations, as well as the empirical evidence of actual interest as expressed by al-Qaeda, the risks are real. NATO shares the assessment of many speakers yesterday -- this is a low probability but very high consequence issue. NATO, I believe, has a role in supporting the global dimension of combating this threat to homeland security.

I’d like to finish with one thought. It is remarkable to see how the IFPA and the United States authorities have brought together such excellent speakers, academics, military and civil emergency planners, and other participants to a homeland security conference. There is also a trans-Atlantic homeland that we all belong to, one in which we want to feel secure. I am confident that the Alliance has an important role in working towards the broad homeland security objectives of this trans-Atlantic area. Thank you very much.
[Applause]