By Ann Roosevelt
French Air Force Gen. St�phane Abrial yesterday became Supreme Allied Commander Transformation (SACT), leading one of two NATO strategic commands and previously led by U.S. commanders.
Abrial takes over from U.S. Marine Gen. James Mattis, who led the command for three years, and though he has relinquished the NATO command, retains command of U.S. Joint Forces Command, in Norfolk, Va. (Defense Daily, July 31).
NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen formally conducted the change of command ceremony held aboard the aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN-69) in port at Naval Station Norfolk, Va.
Rasmussen paid tribute to Mattis for the valuable contribution he brought to NATO’s transformation process for the last three years: “From the outset, General Mattis served to de-mystify transformation, making the work of the command here in Norfolk understandable and relevant to the needs of the Alliance.”
A galaxy of stars was in attendance: Supreme Allied Commander Europe, U.S. Adm. James Stavridis, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Adm. Mike Mullen, Commander of the U.S. Central Command, U.S. Army Gen. David Petraeus, the U.S. National Security Adviser, retired U.S. Marine Gen. James Jones, French Chief of Staff Gen. Jean-Louis Georgelin, and Chairman of the NATO Military Committee, Adm. Giampaolo Di Paola, also took part in the event.
Abrial’s nomination followed the French decision in April to fully return to NATO’s Integrated Military Structure, where it has had a much reduced presence since the 1960s.
In his capacity as SACT, Abrial will lead the transformation of NATO’s military structure, forces, capabilities and doctrine to strengthen the interoperability and deployability of NATO’s multinational forces–a major focus for the new NATO secretary general.
“I already made clear that NATO’s transformation is one of my main priorities,” Rasmussen said during the ceremonies. “My goal is to ensure that we have deployable troops, properly trained and properly equipped. And, importantly, at a price nations can afford.”
NATO Act recently released a multiple future project report on what the world might look like in 2030 and how it might affect NATO (Defense Daily, May 11).
This focus comes at a key moment for the alliance, which recently launched a process to redefine NATO’s Strategic Concept in the face of current strategic challenges.