Address by NATO Deputy Assistant Secretary General John Manza at opening of EADRCC exercise "CRNA GORA 2016"

NATO EADRCC International Consequence Management Field Exercise "CRNA GORA 2016"
Opening remarks by NATO Deputy Assistant Secretary General for Operations John Manza
31 October 2016

PHOTO GALLERY: EADRCC exercise "Crna Gora 2016"

Ladies, gentlemen,

Teams and staff from Allied and Partner nations,

On behalf of the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council and Secretary General Stoltenberg, it is my pleasure to be here with you to kick off the exercise 'Crna Gora 2016".

Exercises like this enable Allies and Partners to work together and to learn from each other. For the success of NATO and of its partners is based on far more than the dialogue between our leaders. It is based on the comradeship of the many men and women who are called to work together in times of need. People from different countries, different cultures and different ways of life working together as one.

Exercises like this also embody the Euro-Atlantic bond that exists between Allies and Partners, and the solidarity and mutual commitment that this bond represents.

Throughout the next four days, next-door neighbors and far away I will work side-by-side to make sure that when the lives of our populations, families and friends are at stake, the sum of our effort will be greater than the sum of its parts.

Over the next four days, you will all become better at what you do. You will learn how to work more effectively with each other. By the end of the exercise, you will have developed a greater understanding o each other and greater confidence in each other's abilities.

The exercise is the result of the extraordinary joint effort and commitment of more than 100 planners, 16 national teams and 31 nations and organizations over the last ten months.

The bar has been set high and I have three words for you - as Nike might say! "Just clear it.

May you all have a successful exercise.

Thank you.