How can we train MOD and Army professionals to be effective ‘defense diplomats’? And how do we even know what to train them on? As the country joined NATO in March 2020, North Macedonia’s high-level military, MOD civilians and training institutes encountered a set of professional challenges very familiar to other Allies. From 2021-2023 Clingendael Academy is partnering with the Joseph Kruzel Training Centre (JKTC) and the Public Affairs Regional Centre (PARC) in Skopje to support the further integration of North Macedonia’s Ministry of Defense and the Army into NATO. To this end, we work with our partners to build their defense training capacity:

• To identify new training needs arising from NATO membership and a changing security situation; 
• To share best practices in curriculum development;
• To develop case studies and roleplays on CIMIC and intercultural communication training;
• To invest through training of trainers in their own capacity to work with these tools

The support includes an annual set of workshops delivered as course package support. These workshops include training on CIMIC, as well as a three-module course on International Security and Governance. Through it, high-level military develops the skills and knowledge they need as professionals working not just on North Macedonia's Defense, but their cooperation within NATO. To this end, we build a cutting edge understanding of international security, including on Cyber Security and Cyber Governance. A second module, on Crisis Management and Crisis Communication, is then followed by a third, on NATO Decision-making and Negotiations. This includes working closely with our partners to ensure participants understand the specific threat landscape of North Macedonia and national governance structures, as well as NATO processes, procedures and best practices.

A multi-year defence capacity-building trajectory  

This cooperation, funded by the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs, includes 29 activities over a 3-year time period. It is an example of Clingendael Academy's support to long-term institutional development in the defense and security sectors.