NATO Ballistic Missile Defence (BMD) was established in September 2005 as the Active Layered Theatre Ballistic Missile Defence (ALTBMD) Programme, for

the protection of deployed forces.  This followed the completion of a two-year feasibility study in which eight NATO nations and various NATO projects cooperatively participated. As a result of the NATO Lisbon and Chicago Summits in November 2010 and May 2012 respectively, the programme was expanded to include the protection of NATO European populations and territory. An interim theatre ballistic missile defence capability was fielded in 2010 followed by an interim territorial defence capability in May 2012.

 

The focus of the Programme is the upgrade, test and integration of NATO’s command and control (C2) systems and underlying communication network to enable effective information exchanges between various NATO and national missile defence systems. This integrated system-of-systems architecture will create a larger range of detection, communication and missile defence capabilities for NATO forces, whether deployed within or beyond NATO’s area of responsibility, and NATO populations and territories. 

 

As of 1 July 2012, the ALTBMD Programme Office became part of the new NATO Communications and Information Agency (NCI Agency). The ALTBMD Programme Office became the NATO Ballistic Missile Defence Programme Office (NATO BMD PO). Click here for a Backgrounder on NATO Ballistic Missile Defence.