While pursuing cost-effective security engagement in fragile states, the United States should look no further than NATO’s mission in Iraq for a model.
NATO Mission Iraq (NMI) plays a vital role in developing the capacity of Iraqi security forces and institutions to combat a wide spectrum of terrorist threats. As the mission evolves, its value as a replicable model for security assistance is becoming increasingly apparent. In an era of shifting global priorities and constrained resources, NATO should consider extending this model to similarly fragile states—particularly Lebanon and Syria—as a means of preemptive stability and sustainable deterrence.
Between 2004 and 2011, NATO maintained a modest but strategically significant training and advisory presence in Iraq. Operating from Union III in Baghdad, Camp Dublin near the airport, Rustamiyah Forward Operating Base, and Taji Airbase to the north, the alliance worked to professionalize Iraqi forces during a fragile post-invasion period. However, with the conclusion of the US combat mission and subsequent military drawdown, NATO’s training mission concluded on December 31, 2011.
The security vacuum that followed June 2014, when ISIS seized Mosul and large portions of northern Iraq, revealed deep deficiencies within Iraqi security forces. In response, the United States launched Operation Inherent Resolve, deploying forces to blunt ISIS advances and support stabilization efforts.
In 2015, the Iraqi government requested NATO’s return. Initially, the alliance conducted training outside Iraq. But by the 2016 Warsaw Summit, NATO committed to deploying a core training team to Baghdad. This initiative eventually grew into NATO Mission Iraq, which I oversaw as Commander of Allied Joint Force Command Naples in 2018.
Major General Dany Fortin of the Canadian Army served as NMI’s inaugural commander. He was succeeded in 2019 by Major General Jennie Carignan, now Canada’s Chief of Defence and the first woman to hold that post. Her appointment was a testament to her performance in Afghanistan and her leadership during one of NATO’s most sensitive missions.
Building NATO Mission Iraq from a small advisory team into a full-spectrum security assistance mission was no small feat. It established a presence in three primary locations:
1) In Baghdad, NATO focused on institutional reform, strengthening the Iraqi National Defense University, and improving leadership training for both military and civilian personnel. Language education, particularly English proficiency, served as a force multiplier.
2) At Beshmaya, the mission trained Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) teams to address the vast quantities of unexploded ordnance—an obstacle to reconstruction in cities like Mosul, where munitions from previous combat operations littered both surface and subsurface environments.
3) At Taji Airbase, NATO facilitated the creation of a transportation and logistics school to ensure internal mobility and logistical resilience across Iraq’s complex operational terrain.
During my visits to these locations, I encountered Iraqi commanders eager to deepen the partnership. However, the mission faced persistent risks, most notably from Iranian-backed Shia militias—collectively known as the Hashd al-Shaabi (also known as the “Popular Mobilization Forces”)—which operated with relative impunity around Baghdad.
A turning point came on January 3, 2020, when a US drone strike killed Iranian general Qasem Soleimani, commander of Iran’s Quds Force, near Baghdad Airport. Soleimani had long been responsible for orchestrating lethal asymmetric operations. One of them was introducing the explosively formed penetrator (EFP) into Iraq—an anti-armor weapon that maimed and killed hundreds of American and allied troops.
The strike sent a decisive signal to Tehran, but the immediate fallout was severe. Iranian-aligned militias launched retaliatory attacks on coalition facilities, including those housing NATO personnel with limited force protection. After consulting with General Tod Wolters, Supreme Allied Commander Europe, and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, we made the difficult decision to temporarily pause the mission and evacuate most NATO trainers to Kuwait.
Still, a small core team led by General Carignan remained in Baghdad to sustain command and control functions. Her determination and diplomatic skill were instrumental in reestablishing the mission’s presence after the crisis abated. NATO trainers eventually returned to Baghdad, Beshmaya, and Taji, reaffirming the alliance’s long-term commitment.
In 2021, at the request of the Iraqi government, NATO ministers approved a significant expansion of the mission’s mandate. The revised scope included advisory support to the Ministry of the Interior and Federal Police Command, with a renewed emphasis on the rule of law, responsible use of force, ethics, and anti-corruption. NMI also supports the protection of civilians in armed conflict and aligns closely with NATO’s Women, Peace, and Security agenda.
As the United States reorients toward strategic competition in the Indo-Pacific, NATO Mission Iraq serves as a compelling model for cost-effective security engagement in fragile states. Building institutional capacity and reinforcing indigenous rule of law mechanisms offer a high return on relatively low investment—one that precludes the resurgence of extremist networks and stabilizes critical regions.
While military training and capacity building are vital components of a comprehensive counterterrorism strategy, they must be complemented by robust legal and diplomatic instruments. One such initiative is the Muslim Brotherhood Terrorist Designation Act of 2025, recently introduced by Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX). If enacted, this legislation would designate the Muslim Brotherhood as a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO), triggering a suite of sanctions that would restrict its financing and operational mobility.
This approach—targeted, legal, and transnational—adds another layer of deterrence to NATO’s strategic posture. In concert with missions like NMI, such measures reinforce a rules-based international order and limit the space in which extremist actors can operate.
Taken together, training missions like NATO Mission Iraq and legislative instruments such as FTO designations represent a holistic and adaptive strategy. They offer scalable solutions to evolving threats, bolster alliance cohesion, and reinforce America’s capacity to project stability in critical regions—without resorting to large-scale combat operations. In a world of rising multipolar tension and transnational insecurity, we can ill afford to neglect either the training ground or the rulebook.
About the Author: James Foggo
Admiral James G. Foggo, US Navy (ret.), is the Dean of the Center for Maritime Strategy. He is the former commander of US Naval Forces Europe and Africa and Allied Joint Force Command, Naples. He commanded NATO joint exercises (Baltic Operations) in 2015 and 2016, as well as Exercise Trident Juncture in 2018.
Image: Sadik Gulec / Shutterstock.com.
