- NDC Policy Brief 22-19: The enhanced Forward Presence: innovating NATO’s deployment model for collective defence, by Christian Leuprecht*.
The enhanced Forward Presence (eFP) is not
merely a deterrence mechanism that relies on NATO’s
reputation to guard the northeastern flank,
but an innovative deployment model in response
to the spectrum of emerging threats that confront
the Alliance and its members.
On the one hand, the eFP enables select member
states to support others, harnessing the economies
and economics of an alliance with the legitimacy
of a NATO mandate under circumstances
where not all member states want to, or are able
to, opt in; or when timelines are tighter than a fullfledged
NATO mission could meet. On the other
hand, the eFP’s potential for crisis management
and security cooperation to address the spectrum
of traditional and emerging threats identified in
the Wales, Warsaw, and Brussels Summit communiqués
is considerable: collective defence aside, the
current eFP is already showing promise in areas
such as building societal resilience and improved
security cooperation among member states that
are deploying and exercising together – but, in the
case of the Baltic states, for instance, without a permanent US headquarters or operational presence.
*(back) Professor in Leadership at the Royal Military College of Canada.
He was Eisenhower Fellow at the NATO Defense College from April
to July 2019.
The views expressed in this NDC Policy Brief are the responsibility of the
author and do not necessarily reflect the
opinions of the NATO Defense College or NATO.
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