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May 17 2021

Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, German Minister of Defence, visits Joint Support and Enabling Command (JSEC) in Ulm for the first time

Ulm, Germany – Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, German Minister of Defence, visited the JSEC during NATO’s Flagship Exercise Steadfast Defender 2021 on Monday, May 17. Lieutenant General Jürgen Knappe, JSEC Commander, welcomed her in the Wilhelmsburg Barracks and provided her with current information about the ongoing command post exercise and the latest progress in the founding process of the command.

The command post exercise part of NATO’s flagship exercise Steadfast Defender 21 takes place in Ulm, Germany, directed by NATO’s Joint Warfare Center in Stavanger, Norway. Storyline of the fictitious scenario is a collective defence situation in the European heartland, involving some 15,000 simulated forces. The aim is reinforcement and sustainment of the Alliance’s forces. “Our task is to ensure seamless, swift, and secure movements of NATO forces through European NATO states to an actual combat area,” explained Knappe

Our task is to ensure seamless, swift, and secure movements of NATO forces through European NATO states to an actual combat area

More than 300 participants from 18 Nations are physically present in the Wilhelmsburg Barracks, where the Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe (SHAPE) in Mons, Belgium will evaluate JSEC’s overall performance throughout the exercise.

From left to right: Major General Hartmut Renk, JSEC Deputy Commander, Lieutenant General Jürgen Knappe, JSEC Commander, Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, German Minister of Defence.  (JSEC picture by Airman First Class Gina Seegert, DEU AF)

“The Joint Support and Enabling Command in Ulm clearly shows that we are ready to take responsibility and leadership within NATO,” stated Kramp-Karrenbauer during her visit, “Serving as a hub in the Alliance, Germany paves the way for smooth operations throughout the entire territory of the Alliance.”

Looking back to last week’s ceremony at SHAPE, Knappe added, “The signing of the Founding Arrangement by the Supreme Allied Commander Europe and the representatives of 17 NATO member states marks a paramount milestone on our journey to full readiness as a NATO headquarters.”

The German Defence Minister, Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, sees the establishing of the Joint Support and Enabling Command as a clear sign of Germany being ready to take responsibility and leadership within NATO. (JSEC picture by Lieutenant Arnim Jungnickel, DEU N)
Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, German Minister of Defence, gets an insight in the current situation of the exercise Steadfast Defender 2021, in the Joint Operations Centre of the Joint Support and Enabling Command. (JSEC picture by Lieutenant Arnim Jungnickel, DEU N)

Story by Joint Support and Enabling Command Public Affairs Office

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Stuttgarter Straße 199
89081 Ulm
Germany

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Wilhelmsburg-Kaserne
Stuttgarter Straße 199
89081 Ulm
Germany