Brunssum, The Netherlands – On Tuesday 12 April, Deputy Commander Allied Land Command (DCOM LANDCOM), Lieutenant General Nicola Zanelli, visited Allied Joint Force Command Brunssum (JFCBS).
Based in Izmir, Turkey, LANDCOM is both the prime land warfare advisor to the NATO Alliance, and a Tactical-level NATO standing headquarters capable of commanding land forces assigned to it. Having taken up his post in February 2022, the main purpose of General Zanelli's visit was to introduce himself and enhance the already strong relationship that exists between LANDCOM and JFCBS.
The visit provided opportunities to discuss a range of topics, including LANDCOM's support to JFCBS land-domain planning, ongoing planning efforts underway in both headquarters and, importantly, JFCBS' experience of commanding land forces in the East of the Alliance.
Note: For the last five years, in response to the 2014 Russian occupation of Crimea, JFCBS has commanded the NATO enhanced Forward Presence (eFP) Battlegroups in Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland. Today, because of Russia's renewed illegal invasion of Ukraine, NATO is forward-basing more high-readiness forces in Bulgaria, Hungary, Romania and Slovakia. LANDCOM will command the forces in Bulgaria and Romania.