Networks Enabling the Alliance’s Command and Control

Abstract

The Alliance’s wide area networks enabling operational command and control (C2) are under continuous revision in order to facilitate the wide spectrum data exchange between NATO Command Structure (NCS), NATO Force Structure (NFS) elements and other key organisations.
The focus is – as always – on the information technology’s researches and network-enabled capability development.
It is clear that running the current NATO wide area network has challenges in terms of network management, information security and counter-cyber operations. Therefore, it requires a viable transformation to a wide area network with a higher-level resiliency and scalability.
Having supported by NATO Communications and Information Agency (NCIA), the decade’s one of the most important tasks is to re-new, re-design and re-organise the existing classified network domain in support of efficient C2 for the current and future operations.
In this scientific article, I will provide with a short historical background of NCIA’s efforts in creation of a more resilient classified domain-net and the needs of core and functional services within the Alliance to introduce the already decided, the viable solution of classified network enhancements.