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JFCBS hosts Exercise Steadfast Jazz 2013 MPC.
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Almost
400 people participated in a Main Planning Conference (MPC) held at the Static
War Headquarters, Castlegate, Germany, from 22 to 24 January. During the MPC representatives
from NATO nations and institutions discussed and prepared the upcoming Exercise
Steadfast Jazz 2013 (SFJZ13) – to be held in Latvia, Lithuania and Poland next
November; the primary purpose of the
exercise is to certify command and control elements of NATO Response
Force 2014.
Steadfast Jazz incorporates a live exercise
designed to serve as a final step in training and evaluation for Allied Joint
Force Command (JFC) Brunssum to take the lead of NRF in 2014.
The aim of the conference was to provide a
forum for continued cooperation among exercise planners, subject matter experts
and, commence essential detailed planning. Participants also set the conditions
for the exercise phases to come.
Lieutenant Colonel Ruud Middelhoven, the
JFCBS project manager for SFJZ13, on behalf of JFCBS Commander said: "The
conference showed NATO’s willingness to organize such an exercise. I can say
that MPC was inspiring and challenging. When we have finalized the planning, we
will prepare for the execution of Steadfast Jazz 13”.
The conference was opened by new Deputy
Commander, Air Marshal Graham Stacey. Subject Matter Experts debated a range of
topics including the scenario, operations, logistics, real life support and
information management.
Planning for SFJZ13 started as long ago as April
2012 when the Exercise Specification Conference was conducted. This was
followed by Initial Planning Conference, held in August 2012, in JFC Brunssum.
The NATO Response
Force (NRF) is a force that can be tailored to meet the needs of a specific
mission and is able to move quickly whenever and wherever it is needed.
Leadership of the NRF
is rotated between NATO's Joint Force Commands Brunssum and Naples. JFC
Brunssum is in the lead for NRF 2014.The
stand-by phase for this rotation will start 1st January 2014 and last for one
calendar year.