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Exercise Allied Action 2003
NATO Exercises a combined Joint Task Force in Turkey

NATO Initial Press Release

31 Oct. 2003

ALLIED ACTION 2003 (AA 03), A NATO Command Post Exercise will take place in Istanbul, Turkey, from 03 – 18 November 2003. AA 03 will be conducted by Regional Headquarters Allied Forces North Europe (RHQ AFNORTH). This exercise is designed to validate the role of RHQ AFNORTH as an operational level headquarters, capable of launching a fully deployable Combined Joint Task Force CJTF).

Over 2000 personnel will participate from supporting NATO Headquarters and from the following nations:

The participants will practise the procedures for planning and mounting a multinational operation, which includes all services in accordance with the CJTF concept. The exercise scenario portrays a crisis response operation in fictitious countries beyond Alliance territory.

The exercise is one of a series started in 1999, designed to practise and validate NATO concepts and doctrine to meet the challenges of possible future operations. The last NATO exercise in the series, named Allied Effort 2001, took place in Poland, in NATO’s Northern region. Preparation for this exercise started over 18 months ago. This exercise is an important step in the implementation process of the CJTF concept, which will provide the Alliance with a vital tool for crisis management in the 21st century.

From 15 October 2003, RHQ AFNORTH is also responsible for the further development of NATO’s new High Readiness Joint and Combined Force: NATO Response Force (NRF).

The Supreme Allied Commander Europe (SACEUR) is the Officer Scheduling the Exercise and the Commander-in-Chief North Europe (CINCNORTH) is the Officer Conducting the Exercise.