NATO Crisis Response Process: Practicing Negotiation, Mediation, and Decision-Making Techniques (NDMX)
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The Negotiation, Mediation, and Decision-Making Exercise (NMDX) was conducted last week at the NATO Defense College, from November 20 to 24, and provided Senior Course 143 an opportunity to implement a portion of the overall NATO Crisis Management Process. The five-day exercise is designed to assist Course Members in enhancing their comprehension of techniques for negotiation, multinational consensus- building, and mediation.
The exercise, the convergence of theory and practical application, is a culmination in the Academic Curriculum of Senior Course 143. NMDX stands as a transformative experience, shaping skilled professionals for the dynamic demands of international crisis management and the multilateral politico-military decision-making process, allowing them to become familiar with the Alliance’s organization and functioning in crisis response situations.
Formulated to simulate cooperation with other international organizations such as the UN, and considering NATO-EU and NATO-AU interactions, the exercise scenario was set on the fictitious Island of Roke, where three different countries were situated: Glefa, Mancy, and Falun. NMDX portrays a situation in which the UN Security Council (UNSC) has taken charge, inviting NATO to consider a Crisis Response Operation (CRO) deployment. This aims to bolster stability and security while preventing the escalation of a regional crisis within and between fictional non-NATO states.
Course Members reached decisions by consensus while representing members of several senior NATO committees, including the Political Committee, the Military Committee, the Policy Coordination Group, and the North Atlantic Council.
For the first time in NMDX history, Senior Course 143 harnessed the power of Artificial Intelligence to draft their strategic scenarios.
Senior Mentors, including Ambassador Tacan Ildem, Lieutenant General (Ret.) Jan Broeks, Lieutenant General (Ret.) Antonio Li Gobbi, Lieutenant General (Ret.) Hans-Werner Wiermann, and Mr Ted Whiteside, played a crucial role in providing guidance to Course Members, ensuring that their learning experience was focused on reaching real objectives. The exercise was planned and moderated by the NDC Faculty Advisor, Colonel Jan Círek. On the 4th day of the exercise, a STRATCOM lecture on “how to master interviews and how to convey a message” was delivered to CMs by the NATO HQ Subject Matter Expert (SME), Ms Simone de Manso.
In conclusion, NMDX successfully consolidated the academic objectives of Senior Course 143, in their full complexity.