The General Director of National Defence Policy & International Relations (GDNDPIR) of the Ministry of National Defence (MoD) Dr. Konstantinos Balomenos participated — as Chief High-Level National Representative of Greece, at the NATO Resilience Committee — on 25 and 26 April 2023, in the proceedings of NATO Symposium on Resilience held in Riga, Latvia. The main objects of the Symposium were:
1. Strengthening the Resilience of the Alliance.
2. Critical infrastructure and security of supply.
3. Data and their role (potentials and traps) in strengthening Resilience.
4. Social Resilience.
In the context of the discussions, it was noted that:
• In order to achieve resilience at both national and NATO levels, a high political decision is required.
• Actions to achieve Resilience at Alliance level trigger broader national actions with the aim of shaping it also at national level.
• The concept of Resilience encompasses both the state and individual dimensions and its achievement requires the synergy of many actors (or stakeholders) and the self-organisation of society at local level.
• Leadership plays a key role in responding rapidly and effectively to emerging hybrid threats and resilience helps to prevent them.
• It is necessary to incentivise cooperation with private sector companies that own and/or manage critical infrastructure through:
- Legislative reforms.
- Public-private partnerships.
- Exploration of the mutual benefits that could be achieved.
- Participation of each party in each other’s processes.
• The exchange of data between all stakeholders is a key point in achieving Resilience.
For his part, Dr. Balomenos, informed NATO officials about our country’s roadmap of actions to strengthen its resilience, through the holistic approach and engagement of all society and stakeholders (Whole-of-society approach).
He also explained that in the short term, national actions are directed towards fulfilling the country’s obligations, ahead of the NATO Defence Ministers meeting in Vilnius (July 2023).
In addition, he stressed that in the medium to long term, the actions that will lead to the increase of our country’s resilience against hybrid threats include the development of a National Resilience Strategy followed by the implementation of the resulting National Resilience Goals.
Finally, the General Director of National Defence & International Relations, Dr. Balomenos, made particular reference to the importance of collective resilience within the Alliance, in order to promote situational awareness and consultation, in order to identify and mitigate the vulnerabilities and dependencies of critical infrastructure.
