Preparing NATO for the Next Defence-Planning Cycle

Abstract

The Atlantic Alliance will be turning more than one corner in 2014. Aside from the end of combat operations in Afghanistan, the year also marks the conclusion of the first cycle of the NATO Defence Planning Process. The arcane world of defence planners arguably represents the principal sphere in which NATO will define a new balance between collective defence and crisis management. Alexander Mattelaer discusses the key debates informing the next defence-planning cycle, and argues that the Wales Summit must provide political guidance for a new level of ambition, extend the planning horizon, and link up with recent European initiatives in the defence-industrial realm.