NATO Force Integration Unit

When a large military force has to move into an area to protect it, it is no small task. There are many considerations, where to house soldiers, where they can eat, how they will communicate. Moreover, in regards to NATO units, how will they move throughout a country they have never been in before?

NFIUs are small independent units that answer that question. They act like reception centres for NATO’s high readiness forces. They ensure the swift movement of said forces to respond to any new security challenges.

Two of the eight NFIUs are in JFC Naples’ area of responsibility: Romania and Bulgaria. It is their responsibility to identify logistical networks, transportation methods and supporting infrastructure in order to ensure that NATO’s high-readiness forces can deploy to their region as quickly as possible.

NFIUs are also essential to NATO military exercises occurring in the Alliance. These exercises allow NATO to develop responsiveness and improve its ability to operate together. The exercises also contain invaluable scenarios that prepare NATO’s commands for peace, crisis and conflict operations.

In short, NFIUs provide a vital link between national forces and the multinational NATO forces. They facilitate the rapid deployment of high readiness forces to a region, support collective defence planning and assist in coordinating training and exercises.