Eng. / Fr.

Chemical, Biological, Radiological, and Nuclear Defence Battalion

What is its authority, tasks and responsibilities?

The realization of the Multinational CBRN Battalion fulfils two of the capability commitments made at the 2002 Prague Summit: a Prototype Deployable Nuclear, Biological and Chemical (NBC) Analytical Laboratory and a Prototype NBC Event Response team. These capabilities greatly enhance the Alliance’s defence against weapons of mass destruction.

The Batallion’s mission is to provide a rapidly-deployable, credible CBRN defence capability, primarily to deployed NATO joint forces and commands, in order that Alliance freedom of action is maintained and NATO forces can operate effectively in a CBRN threat environment.

The CBRN Battalion may be used to provide military assistance to civil authorities when authorised by the North Atlantic Council, the Alliance’s senior decision-making body. For example, they played a key planning role during the 2004 Summer Olympics in Greece, and the 2004 Istanbul Summit, where they were readily available to support any CBRN-related contingency operations.

The CBRN Defence Battalion is capable of conducting the following tasks:

  • CBRN reconnaissance operations;
  • Identification of CBRN substances;
  • Biological detection and monitoring operations;
  • Provide CBRN assessments and advice to NATO commanders;
  • CBRN decontamination operations.