Brunssum, the Netherlands – On the evening of Thursday 11 July the French delegation of JFC Brunssum (JFCBS), led by Brigadier General Jerôme Goisque, hosted a celebration in honour of Bastille Day in the wonderful setting of the Schinvelder Hoeve (Schinvelder Hoeve is a beautiful old building close to Brunssum that has been converted into a hotel). 

In his remarks General Goisque highlighted the importance of social events as a means to build strong relationships in the Alliance.  He stated: “All these social and festive events are a contribution to what we should build together; a cohesive and solid group of servicemen/women and civilians who know each other and do their utmost best to reinforce their mutual understanding to build a credible work-oriented tool.” 

General Goisque also reminded of France’s permanent commitment since NATO’s founding in 1949: “What we celebrate here today with you is the brotherhood that we have built together for 70 years now in this Alliance (…) As you now, France holds a prominent position in the NATO Command Structure (NCS) with the most important ones being the positions of Supreme Allied Commander Transformation in Norfolk (USA) and the Vice Chief of Staff (COS) in Shape(BEL), but we also have flag officers like our COS here at JFCBS and a total of some 650 positions in the NCS.” 

In response, and on behalf of General Erhard Bühler (Commander JFCBS), Lieutenant General Stuart Skeates (Deputy Commander JFCBS) emphasized the outstanding dedication of the JFCBS French delegation and the importance of the nation’s role in NATO.