This week is a special one for the NATO Defense College.
Our 60th Anniversary celebrations will include a range of official events to commemorate the College’s history.
On Wednesday we will open the celebrations with a concert by the Italian Air Force Band in the Auditorium of the Parco della Musica, one of Rome’s premier musical venues.
A Gala dinner will then be held on Thursday evening, hosting the highest officials and representatives of NATO and Partner Countries.
The climax of the week will be the actual Anniversary ceremony, which will take place at the College on Friday morning. The military ceremony will be attended by Italian President Giorgio Napolitano and NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen, together with the Italian Minister of Foreign Affairs Franco Frattini, the Italian Minister of Defence Ignazio La Russa and the Chairman of the NATO Military Committee, Admiral Giampaolo Di Paola. A much awaited highlight of this special occasion will be the unveiling of the NDC History Wall, which is part of a major redecoration of the College entrance. The History Wall will be complemented by the Senior Course Column, with the photographs of students who have attended the course since 1951, as well as an area in which our Distinguished Senior Course Anciens are appropriately honoured. These features, while giving the interior of the College a new look, will above all maintain the essential continuity between past achievements and our commitment to contemporary priorities.
The Public Affairs Office has also published a NDC Chronicle Book, which offers an informative and richly illustrated panorama of 60 years of College history. In addition, the PAO has commissioned a short video clip with highlights of these 60 years. The clip will be shown for the fist time at the ceremony on Friday and will be made available on our NDC webpage.
The NATO Defense College was founded in 1951, in response to the clear need to educate the leadership of the Alliance. This need was clearly expressed on 25th April 1951, in General Dwight D. Eisenhower’s famous statement to the North Atlantic Council: “it is highly desirable to establish in the near future a NATO Defense College for the training of individuals who will be needed to serve in key capacities in NATO Organizations.”
On 19th November 1951, seven months after General Eisenhower’s proposal, the College inaugurated its first Senior Course.
From the outset, the aim of the academic programme was to give officers and civilian officials a very broad perspective, including the study of NATO structures, Alliance countries, communism and the communist countries, and the non-aligned nations.
Over the years the international scenario has changed, as have the challenges facing the Alliance. The curriculum has been updated accordingly, focusing not only on the Alliance’s traditional areas of interest but also on the Middle East, the Far East, the former Soviet Republics, and the Mediterranean Dialogue countries.
We are certain that this week will be a great success, and we hope that you will all enjoy the celebration and related events.
More about the NDC 60th Anniversary:
60th Anniversary of the NATO Defense College: Commemorative Concert
NATO Defense College