Remarks

by NATO Secretary General, Jaap de Hoop Scheffer
at the SACEUR change of command ceremony — SHAPE

News 4 Dec 06 - SHAPE General JOHN CRADDOCK will be the new Commander Multimedia 7 Dec 06 - SHAPE NATO Secretary General, Jaap de Hoop Scheffer on change of Command 7 Dec 06 - SHAPE General James L. Jones on change of Command 7 Dec 06 - SHAPE General John Craddock on change of Command Biographies General John Craddock

We are here to say goodbye to General Jones, to pay tribute to his distinguished service to our Alliance, and to welcome General Craddock.

General Jones, when you took up your post almost four years ago, you became the first United States Marine Corps officer to assume the post of SACEUR.  You arrived with an enviable reputation for leadership skills and political acumen – and of course these are essential attributes for the Alliance’s most senior operational commander.  But as a Marine, you also brought something else that has been particularly well suited to your time in command – the expeditionary spirit.  You have successfully overseen the busiest operational era in NATO’s history, with missions and operations successfully conducted on four continents.  At the same time, you have also managed to drive forward many aspects of NATO’s ongoing transformation. 

General Jones, if I were to try and list fully all your achievements as SACEUR, then we would be here all afternoon.  However, on this special occasion, I would like to take the time to draw attention to some of them. 

You are the first Supreme Allied Commander to have commanded SHAPE in its new guise as Headquarters Allied Command Operations.  You led the reorganisation of our command structure with firm direction and clarity, and have provided NATO with the operational focus it so urgently needed. 

You played a major role in the successful military integration of seven new Allies into NATO.  This was the biggest round of enlargement in NATO’s history.  It involved not just the addition of these countries’ armed forces into our order of battle, but also the development of new plans and procedures to take into account the specific requirements of each nation.  And, thanks to you, it worked!

Without your personal commitment and engagement, we would not have been able to celebrate last week in Riga the Full Operational Capability for the NATO Response Force.  You have pushed the NRF from its inception, through Initial Operational Capability, to a most successful proving exercise in Cape Verde in the summer, and to its Full Operational Capability.  The NATO Response Force is a powerful, cutting edge, joint expeditionary force ready to undertake a wide range of missions at short notice.  No other organisation has anything remotely like it.  The NATO Response Force will forever be synonymous with your determination, creativity and tact in getting nations to provide the necessary force contributions.  It represents the future, and we have it now because of your tireless efforts.

Je voudrais également saluer la source d'inspiration que vous avez été dans votre commandement général des opérations et des missions militaires de l'Alliance. Comme je viens de le dire, nous n'avons jamais été aussi actifs. Au cours de votre mandat, l'Alliance a apporté une aide humanitaire aux victimes de l'ouragan Katrina et à celles du tremblement de terre au Pakistan. L'OTAN continue de diriger la force déployée au Kosovo. Nous maintenons une présence en Bosnie-Herzégovine. Nous appuyons l'Union africaine dans sa mission au Darfour. Nous poursuivons l'opération ACTIVE ENDEAVOUR menée au titre de l'article 5 en Méditerrranée. Et nous avons étendu la présence de la FIAS, dirigée par l'OTAN, à tout l'Afghanistan. À sa façon, chacune de ces opérations et de ces missions représentait un défi pour l'OTAN – et chaque fois, vous avez fait front.

General Jones, your role in the expansion of NATO’s operation in Afghanistan has been especially significant.  This is our most challenging and important mission.  NATO and many of its partners, 37 nations in all, are engaged in a noble and just cause: helping defend Afghanistan’s democracy from a terrible tyranny, and helping to defend our homelands by preventing Afghanistan from again becoming a safe haven for international terrorism. The Alliance expanded across the country in accordance with the Operational Plan that you drafted; this would not have happened without your tireless efforts.

We all know this has been a difficult process, and many Allies and partners have paid a heavy price in this worthy cause.  I know you feel very keenly a sense of responsibility for our troops in the field, and I know that you have instructed your staff to immediately inform you, at any hour of the day or night, of any fatality of a NATO soldier.  This is a heavy burden to bear.

As I prepared these remarks, I read a number of Marine Corps publications, including one that lists the leadership traits Marines should strive for.  These include:  dependability, courage, decisiveness, enthusiasm, initiative, integrity, judgement, tact and loyalty.  I was struck by how well these traits describe you, and your outstanding conduct as the Supreme Allied Commander.

It has been a pleasure to work with you, and to know you.  As a soldier, a gentleman and a friend you never failed either the Alliance or me, living up to the Marine Corps motto semper fidelis, always faithful.     

This brings me to the final point I would wish to make.  Up in Brussels, on the North Atlantic Council, my colleagues and I have always been able to count on you.  You have provided us with your expert and practical military advice to support our decision-making.  You have always ensured that we received honest and insightful assessments.  Therefore, on behalf of all of us on the North Atlantic Council, I should like to say thank you for your dedication to the Alliance, and for your outstanding professionalism.

But I should also like to add my personal thanks for something else – for your friendship.  Over these past three years, you and I have spent a considerable time together – mostly in the air I must admit -- and there has never been a dull moment!

I am aware that in February next year, when you retire, you will have spent forty years proudly wearing your country’s uniform.  And you can be justifiably proud of everything you have achieved – both for your country, and for our Alliance.  And on behalf of Jeannine and I, I should therefore like to take this opportunity to wish you and Diana and your whole family the very best of good fortune and good health for the future.

As in all walks of life, when one chapter closes, another one opens.  It therefore gives me great pleasure to welcome General Craddock, United States Army, to SHAPE as our new Supreme Allied Commander Europe.  I also welcome Linda.  General Craddock, many congratulations on your new appointment.  I am sure that General Jones has already told you how rewarding it will be.  I am equally sure that he will have told you how busy you will be.

General Craddock, you are arriving at an important time for our Alliance.  Last week, in Riga, the Alliance’s Heads of State and Government laid out the direction that NATO’s continuing transformation will be taking over the next few years.  We look to you to march Allied Command Operations boldly along that path to ensure that our Alliance can continue to defend successfully our common security interests values and our common values.