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SOUDA BAY, GREECE  – On  Wednesday, October 22nd, 2025, in the context of the North Atlantic Council (NAC) away day to Chania military facilities, co-organized by the German & the Greek Permanent Missions to NATO, Permanent Representatives of Allied Nations visited the NATO Maritime Interdiction Operational Training Centre (NMIOTC). The distinguished guests led by the Permanent Representatives of DEU and GRC to NATO, H.E. Dr. Detlef Wächter and H.E. Abassador Vasiliki Gounari, respectively, Mr. Julien Kita, NATO Director of Defence Enablement and Resilience, Mrs. Carmen Romero, NATO Director of Security Policy H.E. Ambassador Boris Ruge, NATO’s Assistant Secretary General for

From 13th to 17th of October 2025, the NMIOTC Course 12000 “C-IED in Maritime Interdiction Operations” was conducted at the Centre’s premises. This “NATO Approved” Course fills an operational gap in capability and contributes to operations conducted by Boarding Teams when searching and exploiting evidence, which are fundamental to the C-IED (Counter-Improvised Explosive Device) process. The aim was to train international Boarding Team personnel in NATO Tactics, Technics and Procedures (TTPs) to undertake expedient weapons intelligence tasks on board vessels and other Maritime infrastructure in support of C-IED operations. In total, eighteen (18) trainees from eight (8) countries (Azerbaijan, Bulgaria,

From 29th of September until 17th of October 2025, a twenty-three (23) member Troop from the Royal Netherlands Navy (RNLN) Maritime Security Squadron (MSS) received training in NMIOTC, in order to improve their VBSS capacity in Maritime Interdiction Operations as well as Close Quarter Combat skills (CQC). In the context of the aforementioned training, Lieutenant Colonel Robert van Riel NLD-N, Commanding Officer of the Littoral Manoeuvre Group, paid an office call to NMIOTC Commandant, with whom he discussed the Centre’s training capabilities and future cooperation.

A Training Needs Analysis (TNA) Working Group took place from 8 to 10 Oct 2025 at the NMIOTC premises. Six(6) SMEs (ESP, GRC, POL, PRT, ROU and the USA), from the C-IED Centre of Excellence, the NMIOTC and the US Federal Bureau of Invistigation (FBI) reviewed the training material of the NATO Approved Course 23000 – Weapons Intelligence Team Supplement to the Maritime Environment, as well as the diving part of it, the Underwater Post Blast Exploitation (UPX) Course. The purpose of these Courses is to prepare deploying NATO  Forces to gather intelligence on IEDs and weapons in the maritime

From 30 September to 01 October 2025, representatives of the NMIOTC participated in a workshop hosted by Stellenbosch University, South Africa, focusing on the NMIOTC Course 32000 “Maritime Interdiction Operations in Maritime Oil and Gas Assets”. This event provided an excellent opportunity for the exchange of expertise and best practices related to maritime security and the protection of critical energy infrastructure. Discussions were held in a constructive atmosphere of cooperation, further strengthening the relationship between NMIOTC and academic and operational partners in the region.  

The NATO Medical Lessons Learned Sharing Conference 2025 was held at NMIOTC from 06 to 08 October 2025 in a hybrid format, enabling both in-person and virtual participation. In total forty seven (47) participants representing NATO commands, organizations, agencies, Allied and Partner Nations met in NMIOTC to share the most critical medical lessons identified from operations, training, and exercises during the last year. Furthermore, the conference aimed to share knowledge, experiences, and to identify entities interested in leading innovation, research, and concept development efforts to address lessons identified by the participants.