Center of Excellence for Operations in Confined and Shallow Waters

Center of Excellence for Operations in Confined and Shallow Waters
	; ; Logo of the COE CSW
Lineup	March 3, 2009
Country	Denmark; Germany Finland Greece Italy Lithuania Netherlands Poland Turkey United States; ; ; ; ; ; ; ;
organization	NATO
Type	COE
Strength	44
Location	Naval base Kiel
motto	Meet the Experts - Get Access to Competence
commander
Director	Flotilla Admiral Christian Bock
Executive Director	Sea captain Eike Wetters

The Center of Excellence for Operations in Confined and Shallow Waters (COE CSW) (German: Competence Center for Operations in Marginal Seas and Coastal Waters) is an international military organization that supports the transformation of NATO . As part of the NATO COE program , the COE CSW was founded in April 2007 and officially accredited by NATO on March 3, 2009. It is based in the headquarters building of the Flotilla 1 of the German Navy in Kiel , whose commander is also the director of the COE CSW.

Confined and Shallow Waters (CSW)

CSWs are extremely rugged, busy with traffic and - since mostly the territorial waters as well as parts of the exclusive economic zone are extensive - often controversial operational areas that pose particular challenges due to restricted mobility and its extraordinary complexity. Characteristic, for example, are the diverse interactions between the prevailing operational conditions and the military assignments to be carried out there, which among other things lead to a great potential for surprises, a particularly high operating speed or a very confusing picture of the situation. The large number of actors there - especially non-military - contributes significantly to this. Rapid and unpredictable tactical developments are typical for CSW, which among other things is accompanied by a frequent change of advantage between one's own and the opposing side.

Due to these special features, CSW represent a demanding military field of application in which freedom of movement and action are significantly influenced, in particular by the specific geographical and geophysical conditions as well as by multiple risks and the full spectrum of three-dimensional threats. On the other hand, CSW also offer a wide range of options and advantages for military operations management.

Although CSW is primarily a maritime area of operation, the other dimensions of military operations (land, air, space and cyber) have no less impact there. As a result, CSWs represent the area of operations with the highest level of force joint operation; H. The need for close cooperation between all branches of the armed forces is greatest there.

NATO-COE program

Centers of Excellence of NATO are, in individual cases, nationally or otherwise multinationally supported or financed agencies with the legal status of an international military organization (basis: Paris Protocol of 1952). The purpose of this Center of Excellence is to support the transformation of NATO . They are assigned to the Allied Command Transformation , but not part of the NATO command structure . Your work packages are coordinated with the Allied Command Transformation and are based on the procedures and guidelines of NATO. A Center of Excellence works in at least three of the following fields (COE Pillars):

Doctrine Development and Standardization
Concept development and testing
Evaluation and implementation of knowledge
Training and exercises

By 2015, 21 Centers of Excellence had been accredited by NATO, another three are currently (2015 ^[obsolete] ) in the accreditation process.

Mission and tasks

The task of the COE CSW is to provide technical expertise in the field of competence of operations in confined and shallow waters for NATO as well as for the nations participating in the COE CSW jointly and multinationally in order to advance the further development of military capabilities and in particular to support the transformation of NATO.

As a competence center, the COE CSW primarily develops doctrines, concepts and procedures or makes contributions to them. Part of the work is the implementation of experiments and evaluations as well as the provision of technical expertise for initiatives, projects, exercises and operations of NATO. In addition, the COE CSW works on independent projects related to CSW and promotes understanding of this special area of operation through a series of activities.

work environment

The special status of the NATO COEs as international military organizations and their character as a think tank in their special area of competence require a wide-ranging focus, not only close to the armed forces, but also to other government and non-governmental organizations, science and business. In the NATO area, the COE CSW is closely associated with maritime agencies, such as:

Allied Maritime Command (MARCOM) in Northwood, GBR
Combined Joint Operations from the Sea (CJOS) COE in Norfolk, USA
Naval Mine Warfare (NMW) COE in Oostende, BEL
Center for Maritime Research and Experimentation (CMRE) in La Spezia, ITA

The COE CSW maintains close links with a number of national military agencies, such as the Flotilla 1 in Kiel, the Bundeswehr Technical Center for Ships and Naval Weapons in Eckernförde (WTD71), and the NATO Maritime Interdiction Operational Training Center (NMIOTC) in Souda, GRE and the Maritime Security (MARSEC) COE in Aksaz, TUR.

In addition, good relationships are maintained with civil maritime organizations, especially with maritime security institutions such as the Sea Surveillance Cooperation Baltic Sea (SUCBAS) or Maritime Surveillance (MARSUR).

In addition, the COE CSW works with a number of academic institutions such as the University of the Federal Armed Forces in Munich , the European University Viadrina Frankfurt (Oder) and the Institute for Security Policy of the University of Kiel, with which the "Kiel Conference" on maritime security challenges is organized for the first time in 2015 was, together.

In the economic field, there are close contacts with a large number of partners in the arms industry and maritime trade .

Member States

As a framework nation, the Federal Republic of Germany provides the infrastructure, the basic equipment, a considerable part of the financial contributions, the administrative support and a large number of technical experts.

Since the founding of the COE CSW, the Hellenic Republic , the Kingdom of the Netherlands and the Republic of Turkey have been represented as sponsoring nations . Sponsoring Nations are NATO members who participate financially and with technical experts in the COE CSW. In 2009 the Republic of Poland and in 2014 the Republic of Italy also joined as a sponsoring nation .

NATO COEs are also open to NATO partner countries, which can contribute financially and with experts. In 2011 the COE CSW welcomed the Republic of Finland, the first ever contributing partner of a NATO COE.

After all, the United States of America is represented in the COE CSW with the German Navy as part of the Personnel Exchange Program .

structure

The supervisory body of the COE CSW is the Steering Committee , which consists of the chairman (provided by the Framework Nation , without voting rights) and one representative from each member state (each with one vote). The Steering Committee makes all fundamental decisions with regard to the COE CSW; For example, it approves the work package (Program of Work), monitors its implementation and approves the annual budget.

The COE CSW is led by a Director with the rank of Flotilla Admiral , who is also the commander of the German Navy. The daily business is carried out by the Executive Director , a sea captain .

According to the charter between NATO and the member states, the COE CSW has a process organization with three departments:

Development and External Relations (DER)
Subject Matter Experts (SME)
Analysis and Implementation (AI) (German evaluation and implementation)

There are also three supporting subject areas:

Financial Control (FC) (German budgeting)
Information Technology (IT)
Administrative Support (AS)

The staff of the operational flotilla 1 supports other matters such as military security or logistics.

In 2011 the COE CSW adopted a matrix organization in order to expand the capacities to fulfill the tasks from the Program of Work . For this purpose, the three departments were overlaid with a project organization in order to bundle the existing technical expertise for specific projects.

On the basis of experience in the meantime and in particular to optimize support for NATO transformation in all four work areas, the COE CSW adopted a new work structure in January 2015, which continues to consist of three departments, but strictly between the content-related work (production) and supporting activities (management ) differentiated:

Concept and Doctrine Development (Production)
Training and Analysis (Production)
Staff Operations and External Relations (Management)

The IT and AS departments are assigned to the Staff Operations and External Relations department. The FC subject area is still directly assigned to the Executive Director.

job

On the basis of a request for support , which is normally made by a NATO agency or a nation participating in the COE CSW, the COE CSW supports both through continuous activities, such as participation in various working groups or the support of exercises , as well as through a number of individual projects within his specific area of expertise to transform NATO. Projects have a client (requestor), a clearly defined goal (product), they are to be completed by a certain date (end date) with a concrete result (end state). Projects are, for example, research assignments that are concluded with a report; or the development of tactical procedures that result in a proposed change to a regulation. In connection with its activities and projects, the COE also organizes events such as conferences, symposia or workshops.

The Steering Committee approves the annual work package ( Program of Work ), which includes the main activities and projects of the COE CSW.

literature

Heinz Georg Buss: COE CSW - avant-garde in the NATO transformation process . In: Marineforum . tape 11-2015 , pp. 4th ff .
Heinz Georg Buss; Stefan Riewesell: Maritime C-IED and Harbor Protection: A Joint Effort . In: The Transformer Fall 2013 . tape 9 issue 2, p. 18 .
Hans-Joachim Stricker : Center of Excellence for Operations in Confined and Shallow Waters COE CSW - The COE as an expression of our special national capabilities in the alliance . In: Marineforum . tape 6-2007 , pp. 3 f .
Fritz-Rudolf Weber: Center of Excellence for Operations in Confined and Shallow Waters - Think Tank for NATO . In: Marineforum . tape 1 / 2-2010 , p. 11 ff .
Jan Wiedemann: COE CSW celebrates fifth anniversary . In: NAVAL FORCES . tape III / 2014 , p. 90 f . (English).
Brian Wilson: Five maritime security developments that will resonate for a generation. In: National Security Journal. Harvard Law School, March 11, 2015, accessed March 19, 2015 .

Web links

Individual evidence

↑ Matthias Faermann: German Navy - Press Release (journal article): New NATO expert center on the Kiel Fjord is picking up speed. In: press portal. Marine Press and Information Center, May 25, 2009, accessed December 19, 2014 .
↑ Katrien Eloot and Marc Vantorre: Ship Behavior in Shallow and Confined Water: an Overview of Hydrodynamic Effects through EVS. (PDF; 7.9 MB) October 13, 2011, accessed December 19, 2014 (English).
↑ Alexander Franken: NATO on the Kiel Fjord. (PDF) In: Hardthöhenkurier 2/2012. Pp. 50–53 , accessed December 19, 2014 .
↑ Centers of Excellence. NATO, accessed June 15, 2015 .

[1] Matthias Faermann: German Navy - Press Release (journal article): New NATO expert center on the Kiel Fjord is picking up speed. In: press portal. Marine Press and Information Center, May 25, 2009, accessed December 19, 2014 .

[2] Katrien Eloot and Marc Vantorre: Ship Behavior in Shallow and Confined Water: an Overview of Hydrodynamic Effects through EVS. (PDF; 7.9 MB) October 13, 2011, accessed December 19, 2014 (English).

[3] Alexander Franken: NATO on the Kiel Fjord. (PDF) In: Hardthöhenkurier 2/2012. Pp. 50–53 , accessed December 19, 2014 .

[4] Centers of Excellence. NATO, accessed June 15, 2015 .