There was already the 33rd Corps Committee Meeting held on 2nd and 3rd September 2008 in Bonn, Germany. It was a regular meeting organised to announce reports on currently ongoing projects and receive guidance from the Corps Committee for further development of the Corps.
Working in pleasant atmosphere
It was German Colonel Stephan Thomas who chaired the 33rd Corps Committee. The other two co-chairmen were Brigadier General Anatol Wojtan as the Polish representative and Colonel Lars Møller as the Danish representative. It was the first time when that Danish Colonel participated in the Corps Committee work. It is important to notice that Colonel Møller was Chief of G-5 Division in the HQ MNC NE, what indicates his detailed knowledge of the Corps’ matters.
The Corps Headquarters was represented by 8-person team with the Commander MNC NE Lieutenant General Zdzisław Goral in lead. In the meeting also participated Deputy Commander MNC NE Major General Ole Køppen, Chief of G-3 Division Colonel Klaus Finck, Chief of G-6 Division Colonel Peter Baierl, Military Assistant to the Commander Lieutenant Colonel Roger Specht, Military Assistant to the Deputy Commander Lieutenant Colonel Krzysztof Płoucha, the Corps’ Legal Adviser Mr. Jochen Katze. Lieutenant Colonel Lothar Hoffmann and Major Aleksandras Petrulis participated in the Corps Committee Meeting as representatives of the G-5 Division Policy Branch, which in fact is responsible for dealing with the Corps Committee matters on behalf of HQ MNC NE.
There was a number of significant topics brought to the agenda of this 33rd meeting. The upcoming CRYSTAL EAGLE 2008 Exercise was assessed by the Corps Committee as well prepared. The implementation of the new MNC NE Command and Control System SZAFRAN was evaluated as efficient and going smoothly.
The Corps’ Training and Exercise Policy document, including Commander’s vision for future MNC NE training, was accepted and mission-oriented approach agreed by the Framework Nations. The celebration of the 10th Anniversary of the MNC NE, one of the important ongoing projects, was also discussed and the Headquarters’ plans and dates were approved.
Another important issue was the revision of the Corps’ Founding Documents. Since the establishment of the Corps in 1999, its development is being a permanent process, which created a need to update some documents. During this Corps Committee Meeting the Amendment No 1 to the Corps Directive was signed.
Finally, the rotation of the flag posts was examined.
Two in one
Apart from all discussions and decisions taken during the Corps Committee Meeting, two Generals, the chairman and both co-chairmen had a meeting with the Chief of the Army Staff, Major General Werner Freers. Moreover, a special programme for participants of the Corps Committee meeting was prepared, which included sightseeing in Cologne and Bonn.
The next Corps Committee Meeting is going to take place in December this year in Świnoujście, Poland. That time the Corps Committee meeting will be combined with the 4th Plenary session, which brings all ten Corps’ nations together to coordinate multinational issues, e.g. budget, manning and future national contributions to the Corps.
