8th C-IED Lessons Learned Workshop

C-IED COE held online the 8th C-IED Lessons Learned Workshop (LLWS) the 27th and 28th of April 2021. The event was forced to be online due to pandemic COVID-19 restrictions. The aim of the LLWS is to contribute to the NATO Lessons Learned process and to increase the knowledge of missions that different nations/agencies are conducting in countries with a high IED threat in order to facilitate and enhance interaction in the multinational C-IED community. The LLWS. The workshop was developed on the basis of three topics: a. SAHEL, what has been learned and what needs to be learned to face the next challenges. b. The awareness of the C-IED threat to security forces worldwide at the operational and strategic level. c. The new NATO Lessons Learned Portal and the C-IED Community of Interest.

Briefers from different units/organizations provided their point of view about the related topics. It is to be noted the willingness and work of the speakers. The different structures and procedures of organizations and units respond to the evolution of lessons learned throughout their activities. Not only is the information and knowledge exposed and shared in the LLWS important, but also the dissemination of C-IED culture. This supports the identification of C-IED as a common and shared problem. More than 60 participants attended this event.

Attack the network Operational Course ATNOC 21.1

Attack the Network Operational Course (ATNOC) 21.1 The C-IED COE conducted in its premises another iteration of the ATNOC in the period of 12-23 April 2021 with 21 students from 6 nations. Supported by external Subject Matter Experts from U.S. Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA), U.S. Army Europe (USAREUR) and EUROPOL .

European Counter Terrorism Centre ECTC), the C-IED COE could also count again on the support of the ESP Joint Special Operations Component Command (JSOCC, MCOE) and Communications Division of NATO Rapid Deployable Corps (CommsDiv, NRDC, ESP). The ATNOC provides NATO Staff Officers/Senior Staff Assistants from C-IED/Intel/Ops/Plans or other Counter terrorism related disciplines, from tactical and operational level commands as well as personnel of Law Enforcement and Intelligence Agencies with AtN related Situational Awareness. Emphasis concentrates on knowledge and skills to integrate and facilitate the comprehensive AtN approach across other HQ processes and disciplines (e.g. NATO OLPP, intelligence, targeting and exploitation processes) in order to recommend lethal and non-lethal ways to engage all networks (threat, neutral and friendly) and to assess on the engagement effects. 

AUXDEFENCE 2020 World Conference on Advanced Materials for Defence

AuxDefense 2020 — 2nd World Conference on Advanced Materials for Defense sponsored by the Portuguese Ministry of National Defense and organized by the University of Minho has been held online from 06-08 July and it has focused on the latest scientific and technical novelties in advanced materials for Defense, including equipment and soldier protective systems.

Among many topics presented several could be highlighted as active materials, blast protection, camouflage chameleonic materials, chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear detection/protection, composite materials, impact absorption, fibers meta materials, nanomaterials and nanostructures, self-healing materials or smart materials and textiles. 

In this conference the C-IED COE has presented its Research & Development (R&D) Project (PRINSE- Protection of Infrastructures against explosions – Use of elastomer/polyurea coatings) in the afternoon of the 7th July describing its last tests and findings.

C-IED Staff Officer Course 20.2

From 22-26 June 2020 the C-IED Staff Officers Course (CSOC) 20.2 was conducted in the C-IED COE in Madrid. With participants of five NATO nations, from organizations of Navy, Army, Civil Guards and National Police as well, there was a lot of experience in the class. Having representatives from these nations and organizations in the course was a great benefit. From an other point of view, having students from national tactical levels to a SHAPE representative gave us the opportunity to establish a very active and interactive picture of the audience throughout the whole course, discussions and change of information were as interesting as ever. The C-IED COE wants to emphazise that the C-IED Staff Officer Course is NOT intended for army personnel exclusively. The C-IED COE wants to promote this course to all joint and interagency organizations, for the joint and interagency approach will benefit both the students and the course itself.