Category: Monkwire

NATO’S New Secretary General

~ Michael A. Innes ~ Leave a comment

Former Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen took over the reins as NATO Secretary General (SecGen) this past weekend. His social media campaign kicked in, too, with a new video blog, Facebook page (34,000+ fans and counting), and Twitter stream. It’s the little things that matter, really: he – or whoever – didn’t post to the blog as “Admin” or “PAO” or anyone else, but as Anders Fogh Rasmussen. That doesn’t mean he’s really doing it himself (although the video part would be hard to fake), but at least the media team running that show has set some basic web credibility markers. Should be interesting to see how SecGen’s media campaign compares to that of his military counterpart, Admiral James Stavridis, based down the road from Brussels at Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe. Stay tuned.

While we’re on the subject of NATO, check out the new community site that’s been set up to field debate on the Strategic Concept. Pretty slick.

An Open Challenge to NATO

~ Michael A. Innes ~ Leave a comment

One of the more interesting online think tank initiatives, the Atlantic Community, got in touch with us a few days ago and kindly extended an invitation to help promote a new media initiative and participate in an extended discussion of the organization. The message was accompanied by a disclaimer that the email “is part of a service project conducted in cooperation with NATO” – I guess the Public Diplomacy Division at NATO Headquarters in Brussels is ramping up its social media engagement via partners like this one.

The message:

Dear CTlab,

On the occasion of its 60th anniversary the North Atlantic Treaty Organization has released three online video spots designed to make the Alliance’s core values interesting for young people.

You can find the videos, and other relevant information here:

http://www.60yearsnato.info/#/home

We would like you to join our debate on whether NATO is successful in its mission amongst changing global security priorities, and would be delighted if you could feature one of the videos on your blog together with your thoughts, ideas, or criticisms about it, to help spark discussion.

You can also follow the debate taking place on Atlantic-Community.org:

http://www.atlantic-community.org/index/articles/view/Is_Freedom_for_Free%3F_Join_the_Debate%21

Please don’t hesitate to contact us should you have any questions.

With best regards,

The Atlantic Community Team

Happy to oblige, but we’ll do one better. Here’s a challenge, direct to NATO PDD via The Atlantic Community: we’ll host a virtual symposium right here at CTlab, on a subject of PDD’s choice – like, say, the new Strategic Concept. We’ll ensure a healthy cohort of subject matter experts and scholars from around the world. All PDD has to do is provide one representative – preferably a public face of NATO like this one – to participate.

SACEUR’s New Blog

~ Michael A. Innes ~ Leave a comment

US Navy Admiral James Stavridis, dual-hatted (as per norm) as NATO’s new Supreme Allied Commander Europe (SACEUR) and Commander EUCOM, is now officially engaged as such through social media. According to Donna Mills, writing at the American Forces Press Service, “The very day he assumed his post as NATO’s supreme allied commander for Europe last week, Navy Adm. James Stavridis reached out in a way none of the previous 15 NATO commanders since Army Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower had: he posted a blog.” More, “Stavridis named his new blog, ‘From the Bridge,’ a reference to the two commands’ focus on bridging the Atlantic to link the United States and Europe.”

That last bit’s not exactly accurate. Stavridis didn’t “post a blog”, which suggests he created the blog, and it’s all his, all the time. ‘From the Bridge’ isn’t really a personal blog at all. It’s part of EUCOMversations, which describes itself as “the official blog of United States European Command.” It lists a roster of bloggers, including Capt. Ed Buclatin, Terri Centner, MC2 Dana M. Clark, MG Ken Keen, John Tomassi, VADM Dick Gallagher, Jeffery Marshall, EUCOM guest bloggers, and Stavridis himself.

This is institutional framework blogging, so freedom to post first thoughts and unedited, off the cuff commentary is an issue. There aren’t too many people in a position to censor edit Stavridis, but someone of his rank and position is still unlikely to have 100% latitude in what he communicates publicly (and expect to keep his job). EUCOMversations’ legal notices suggest a pretty controlled media environment, and read more like a set of internally distributed orders than something meant for the public at large. “Your failure to follow these rules,” it notes, “whether listed below or in bulletins posted at various points in the Web site, may result in suspension or termination of your access to the Web site, without notice, in addition to other remedies.” Sounds ominous, given that this is openly viewable content.

Notwithstanding former SACEUR and current National Security Advisor Gen. Jim Jones’ claims about effective time management, Stavridis is unlikely to have the sort of spare scheduling slots needed to get juiced up as a blogger. It’s also interesting that Stavridis’ blogging is being done primarily through a US vehicle, albeit a controlled one. NATO stratcom, which is subject to the expectations and requirements of 28 member states, is still feeling its way when it comes to social media engagement. Stavridis, as SACEUR, sits at Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe (SHAPE), which runs Allied Command Operations (ACO), one of NATO’s two strategic commands. It has a blog, too, the “ACO SitRep“, where you can read Stavridis’ cross-posted “From the Bridge” message – posted, apparently, by “Public Affairs Ops”.

Use of persuasive technologies and basic web credibility standards suggest that blog content at least has to appear genuine and straight from the horses’ mouth in order to work. So far: meh… this reads more like blogging as press release than personal engagement.

H/t SWJ

NATO’s Strategic Concept

~ Michael A. Innes ~ Leave a comment

Speaking of neutered, ineffective concepts in international relations… this, from the NATO website:

NATO will formally launch the process leading to the new Strategic Concept of the Alliance at a major security conference in Brussels. The Conference – taking place under the authority of the NATO Secretary General, Jaap de Hoop Scheffer – will also mark the beginning of a dialogue with the wider public. The event, to be held at the Palais d’Egmont in Brussels on the 7th July 2009, will be attended by the NATO Secretary General designate, Mr. Anders Fogh Rasmussen, and will bring together a broad range of representatives from Allied and Partner governments, NATO structures, international organizations, civil society, including parliaments, the corporate sector, NGOs, think tanks, academia and the media.

The Secretary General will give the introductory address. Other speakers include the former U.S. Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright; the IAEA Director General, Mohamed ElBaradei; Supreme Allied Commander Transformation, General James Mattis; former EU Commissioner António Vitorino; the Chairman of the EU Military Committee, General Henri Bentégeat; the Executive Director of the UN World Food Programme, Josette Sheeran; the Chief Executive Officer of ENI, Paolo Scaroni; and the Chairman of Lloyd’s of London, Lord Levene of Portsoken.

The aim of this Secretary General’s conference on July 7th is to formally launch the process leading to the new Strategic Concept and begin a dialogue between NATO and a wide range of experts from the strategic community as well as the broader public. The conference will examine how the Alliance relates to the rest of the world, as part of a wider network of security actors. It will also look at NATO’s role in addressing new threats and challenges.

At the Summit in Strasbourg and Kehl on 4 April 2009, NATO Heads of State and Government tasked the Secretary General to develop a new NATO Strategic Concept. The current Strategic Concept was approved at the Washington Summit in 1999. The Summit also tasked the Secretary General to convene and lead a broad based group of qualified experts who will lay the ground for the new Alliance Strategic Concept. This will be done with the active involvement of the North Atlantic Council.

The Strategic Concept is the authoritative statement of the Alliance’s objectives and provides the highest level of guidance on the political and military means to be used in achieving them. It also describes NATO’s fundamental security tasks and is the basis for the implementation of Alliance policy as a whole. It is therefore, one of the key policy documents of the Alliance. The process leading to the new NATO Strategic Concept will engage all Allies in a major intellectual exercise and will examine all aspects of NATO in the run-up to the next summit.

A detailed programme of the conference can be viewed here. The entire event will be filmed by NATO and streamed live on the NATO Website .

TV networks can obtain the live feed from the conference via EBU bookings in Geneva, and copies of it can be obtained subsequently via the NATO TV/Radio unit in Brussels (Point of Contact : Mr. Jean-Marc Lorgnier, +32.2.707.5006). The key interventions of the conference will be available the next day on the NATO Internet television.

High-definition photographs of the event will be available throughout the day via the NATO Website. No media opportunities are foreseen beyond the arrangements detailed above.

The Strategic Concept is a big deal, but it’s only as good as its ultimate interpretation and implementation. That means the “intellectual exercise” needs be sufficiently grounded, robust and comprehensive to enable Allied Command Operations (ACO) – the military pragmatists who actually run NATO operations – to get on with their jobs. As with the previous two iterations, I don’t expect that this round of wanking discussion will result in any great changes. That said, there have been a few small changes in geopolitics in the intervening years: Russia’s chokehold on European energy issues, for one, and its willingness to flex strategic into its near abroad, for another. Oh, and that pesky little question of state sanctioned (if not operated) parahackers… and, errrr, that little counterinsurgency thing in, ahem, Afghanistan. Baseline: I hope that the policymakers note that state and non-state threats ebb and flow, and that the overall character of the Strategic Concept isn’t just shaped by flavor of the month security threats.

Who’s Running the Show?

~ Michael A. Innes ~ Leave a comment

David Axe has got an interesting piece up at DR on the incoming Supreme Allied Commander Europe (SACEUR), US Navy Admiral James Stavridis. Axe makes some interesting points about the relevance of Stavridis’ narco-busting experience in South America, but what struck me was how details about his and General Stanley McChrystal’s respective roles have gotten garbled.

Axe:

Navy Adm. James Stavridis, arguably the sea service’s intellectual leader, is making the leap from Latin America’s U.S. Southern Command, to the top job at European Command. That means he’ll also be NATO Supreme Commander, which puts him at the head of the faltering NATO war effort in Afghanistan.

Stavridis, in a media interview:

My experience there will translate well to my role as the NATO commander in Afghanistan, which is, let’s face it, an insurgency, drug-fueled, obviously 100 percent different in many ways. But, my experiences in understanding and learning counter-insurgency I think are up to the task.

Axe again:

Based on his experience in Colombia, Stavridis praised the elevation of commando Gen. Stan McChrystal, to lead U.S. forces in Afghanistan. “I think he’s a perfect choice. He has deep, deep tactical experience in insurgency.”

Sigh… Stavridis is Supreme Allied Commander Europe, a.k.a. “SACEUR” (pronounced SACK-UR). That makes him el supremo of Allied Command Operations (ACO), which is one of two NATO strategic commands (the other being Allied Command Transformation, or ACT). The position places Stavridis in charge of a number of European headquarters, as well as all NATO operations. What it doesn’t do is make him “NATO Supreme Commander”. There’s this little position called Secretary General (or SecGen), see, and SecGen and SACEUR have equivalent authority. The former directs the civilian-diplomatic part of the Alliance, the latter runs the military strategic side of things.

Stavridis’ job as SACEUR also doesn’t make him the guy running the show in Afghanistan, at least not directly. There’s an intermediate operational headquarters between SACEUR and ISAF, for one thing. McChrystal is Commander ISAF (COMISAF). That means he’s doing more than just leading US forces in Afghanistan, he’s also running the NATO mission there, including troops from more than forty contributor nations. He reports to Stavridis, but he’s the one directly responsible for the show in Afghanistan.

A lot of this can be put down to the byzantine nature of NATO structures. Some of it can probably be explained away as new guy slip of the tongue. But at the end of the day, it’ll be interesting to see how the ego pokes turf wars campaign plays out.