13th CMDR COE Steering Committee (SC) Meeting
Date: (22-10-2025)
The CMDR COE Steering Committee held its 13th meeting. This strategic governing body is responsible for the approval and management of the Centre's Programme of Work and the shared budget.
The Chairperson of the SC, Lieutenant General Mihail Popov, Bulgarian Deputy Chief of Defence, welcomed the five representatives on the Committee: one from Bulgaria as the Framework Nation, and four from the respective Sponsoring Nations – Greece, Hungary, Poland, and Romania. The meeting was also attended by observers from the Embassies of Finland and Japan. Lieutenant General Mihail Popov affirmed that all SC members and CMDR COE staff are dedicated and committed to the further development of the Centre.
The Committee acknowledged the reported activities and the Quality Assurance report for 2025, discussed the Financial Budget, and approved the Programme of Work for next year, based on NATO’s and Sponsoring Nations’ requests for support, as well as CMDR COE operational development requirements.
It was reported that the Centre’s activities and assigned tasks have been successfully completed, and the Centre continues to expand its range of offerings. The courses conducted in the past 12 months attracted considerable attention from experts and institutional representatives within the Crisis Management and Disaster Response Community of Interest, affirming the Centre’s capacity to address both current and emerging global security challenges.
It is also noteworthy that this year the CMDR COE reached another milestone by adding an appointment as Department Head for the Information and Knowledge Management discipline, having upgraded the appointment as Department Head for the Business Continuity Management discipline in 2023.
In accordance with its strategic objectives, the Centre maintains a high level of ambition and has already demonstrated its readiness to enhance NATO’s and Partners’ ability to anticipate, prepare for, prevent, and respond to crises and disasters.
The discussions during the SC meeting were productive and valuable to the shared mission and ongoing development of the CMDR COE, which stands ready and competent to continue advancing its work in support of NATO’s transformation in the domain of crisis management and disaster response.
The hard work, professionalism, and dedication of all CMDR COE staff were highly appreciated by the SC members, as their contribution ensures the quality of products provided by the CMDR COE.
News
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A course for planners developmentCrisis Response Operation Planners Professional Development Course (12-16 Sep 22)
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Welcome Newcomers
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Extension of the Technical Agreement between CMDR COE and the Nikola Vaptsarov Naval AcademyAn Annex to the Tehnical Agreement was signed between the CMDR COE and the Nikola Vaptsarov Naval Academy formalizing the commitment to implement the agreed activities within the next 5 years.
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ESDC Press Release on the Disaster Relief in CSDP Context CourseThe European Security and Defence College (ESDC) had the honour of co-organising the course on Disaster Relief in CSDP Context, together with the Crisis Management and Disaster Response Centre of Excellence, the Diplomatic Institute to the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Bulgaria and the Romanian National College of Home Affairs.
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Spring 2022 CMDR COE Interns successfully complete their internship Interns present their research on CMDR-related topics.
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Disaster Relief in CSDP Context CourseThe aim of the course is to provide basic knowledge about the impact of man-made, natural and climate driven disasters on the European Security.
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Honorary Award from the Bulgarian Diplomatic Institute CMDR COE Director awarded for contribution
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NATO Partnerships 360 SymposiumCMDR COE Panelist to the NATO Partnerships 360 Symposium.
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New life for used plastic – the CMDR COE launches a recycling initiativeThe CMDR COE new approach to reducing plastic pollution.
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Representatives from UK and US Embassies paid a visit to CMDR COEThe CMDR COE is proud to announce that on 31st of May 2022 a meeting with representatives from The United Kingdom Embassy to Bulgaria and the United States Embassy to Bulgaria was held.
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Visit of the Chief of Defence of the Republic of TurkeyOn 31st of May, 2022, General Yaşar Güler, Commander of the Turkish Armed Forces paid an official visit to CMDR COE.
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Role of Crisis DiplomacyTogether with Bulgarian Diplomatic Institute (BDI) online iteration of the Crisis Management in Multilateral Frameworks (IGOs): The Role of Political/Civilian and Military Crisis Diplomacy Course
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Signed Note of Joining of Hungary to CMDR COEWe are proud to announce that a Note of Joining of Hungary to CMDR OOE was signed at the Headquarters of the Allied Command of Transformation.
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Visit of the JFCNP ACOS J9Brigadier General Marcus Ellermann paid a visit to the CMDR COE
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