NATO will take command of the ISAF mission on August 11, but the first advance party from the Joint Command Centre in Heidelberg, Germany set off on July 5 to prepare the handover from the current Dutch/German force that is running ISAF.
A NATO press release said the mission was authorised by organization's decision-making body, the North Atlantic Council, in April.
Lieutenant General G?tz Gliemeroth (German Army), Commander JCC and the appointed Commander of ISAF, will lead a multi-national force composed of about twenty NATO- and Partner nations. Force contributing nations will deploy their troops in due course to ensure a smooth hand-over of the ISAF operation to NATO. The change of command is planned for 11 August 2003 in Kabul.
The ISAF mission remains firmly anchored in the UN Security Council Resolutions and the Bonn Agreement that set the course for Afghanistan, and the mandate for the NATO force will remain the same.
NATO’s Regional Commander-in-Chief Allied Forces North Europe, General Sir Jack Deverell, will have operational command for ISAF from his Headquarters in Brunssum, The Netherlands.
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