Major-General Dany Fortin is Commander-designate of the new NATO Mission-Iraq (NMI). Major-General Fortin is currently the Commander of the 1st Canadian Division Headquarters in Kingston, Ontario, and will assume command of NATO’s training and capacity building mission, set to begin in the fall of this year.

“It is an honour and privilege to be designated as the Commander of this NATO mission. I am confident that our contribution will meet the expectations of Canadians, our Allies and partners, and especially the population of Iraq as we seek to help their security institutions to ensure long-term peace and stability in Iraq,” said MGen Fortin.

NMI was announced at the Brussels Summit in July 2018, and is being established in response to a request from the Government of Iraq. Canada’s contribution will help build security capacity and improve democratic governance. The mission will consist of approximately 580 NATO personnel. Up to 250 Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) members will join partner countries in helping Iraq build a more effective national security structure and improve training for Iraqi security forces.

Under Operation IMPACT, the CAF is already providing training and assistance to the Iraqi security forces and helping regional forces build their capacity. The NATO mission will complement Canada’s ongoing support to Iraq, as we work to lay the foundations for longer-term peace and stability. Canada’s leadership of the NMI will complement our existing efforts in the Global Coalition against Daesh, transitioning our support for Iraq to meet present needs and solidify gains.

As a founding member of NATO, Canada has demonstrated dedicated and active leadership in the organization and will continue to do so for years to come under our new defence policy, Strong, Secure, Engaged.