Promoting Joint Staff and Interagency Cooperation in the Armed Forces of Montenegro

Montenegro has existed as a sovereign principality since the Middle Ages. It successfully maintained independence from the Ottoman Empire, first as a theocracy ruled by bishop princes and later as a secular principality. National independence was interrupted at the close of World War I, when it was absorbed into the confederation that, in 1929, became the Kingdom of Yugoslavia. At the close of World War II, Montenegro became a constituent republic of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia SFRY. It regained sovereignty in June 2006 on the basis of a national referendum which dissolved association with the rump Yugoslavia confederation of Serbia and Montenegro. Today, as it approaches its fifth anniversary of independence, Montenegro is actively pursuing membership in both the North Atlantic Treaty Organization NATO and the European Union EU. In December 2009, Montenegro was invited to participate in NATOs Membership Action Plan MAP. MAP is a NATO program of advice, assistance and practical support tailored to the individual needs of countries wishing to join the Alliance. A key initiative supporting this effort is the utilization of the U.S. European Commands USEUCOM military to military M2M programs. Over the past three years, as part of this effort, the U.S. Army War College USAWC traveling contact teams TCT have assisted the Armed Forces of Montenegro VCG in the areas of joint staff structure, strategic planning processes, and national strategy reviews. As they strengthened their internal processes, the Montenegrin Ministry of Defense MoD and the VCG General Staff GS recognized the key role that interagency cooperation played in the execution of national policy and in response to natural and manmade disasters.