NICOLA DE SANTIS NATO HQ BRUSSELS

Nicola de Santis joined NATO’s International Staff of the NATO Headquarters in Brussels on 1 November 1991, following international competition. During his 33 years career at the Brussels NATO Headquarters, following 3 international competitions, he has served under eight NATO Secretary Generals, in different senior executive policy and communications positions.

 

For twenty-five years Mr. de Santis, was in charge of NATO’s high level political relations and practical cooperation activities with Mediterranean and Middle East countries, including as Head of the MENA Section in the Political Affairs and Security Policy Division and as Head of the Mediterranean Dialogue and Istanbul Cooperation Initiative Countries Section in the Public Diplomacy Division, at NATO Headquarters in Brussels. He was the first NATO International Staff official in charge of NATO outreach to the seven Middle East and North African partner countries in NATO’s Mediterranean Dialogue, since its establishment in 1994.

 

As Head of the Middle East and North Africa Section in the Political Affairs and Security Policy Division of the NATO Headquarters in Brussels (2010-2019), Nicola de Santis was responsible for developing and promoting NATO policy, political relations, individual practical cooperation programmes; leading international negotiations to develop individual programmes of cooperation with Middle Eastern and North African countries, especially those participating in NATO’s Mediterranean Dialogue (MD) and in the Istanbul Cooperation Initiative (ICI), as well as with Iraq and Lybia. He also ensured coordination with all other Divisions of NATO’s International Staff, International Military Staff and relevant NATO Military Authorities, for all aspects of NATO’s cooperation with countries in the Middle East and in North Africa.

 

During his service at NATO Headquarters, he worked very closely with NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer, during his major political outreach to the leaders of 11 NATO partner countries in the Middle East and North Africa, as well as with Anders Fogh Rasmussen, coordinating NATO practical cooperation and conducting high level negotiations for international agreements with MENA partner countries. During the 2011 UN mandated NATO Operation Unified Protector in Libya, he was in charge of sensitive political and military aspects of this operation, reporting regularly to NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen. Mr. de Santis kept as well political relations with other countries of this region, such as Saudi Arabia, Oman and Lebanon, as well as regional organisations, namely the League of Arab States and the Gulf Cooperation Council.

 

Mr. de Santis, joined the Private Office of the Secretary General of NATO (OSG), Office of Information and Press (OIP), on 1 November 1991, following international competition, as Deputy Head of the NATO Countries' Academic Affairs Unit, in the External Relations Section, a position he was appointed to by then Secretary General Manfred Woerner, in order to establish NATO's cooperative ties with strategic studies centers, international affairs institutes and think tanks doing work in international and security affairs, in all of the then 16 NATO member countries. Following another international competition, he was appointed in January 1994 by NATO Secretary General Willy Claes, as Briefing and Liaison Officer Italy, External Relations Section, Private Office of the Secretary General, Office of Information and Press (OSG-OIP), in charge of NATO’s relations with Italy, establishing and maintaining contacts with government authorities, political parties, parliamentary committees dealing with foreign and defense policies, trade unions, opinion leaders and the media. He was subsequently designated Briefing and Liaison Officer for Spain (ad interim), as well.

 

In November 1994, he was dual-hatted as Officer for Southern and Eastern Mediterranean Countries, External Relations Section, Office of the Secretary General, Office of Information and Press (OSG-OIP), in charge of NATO’s outreach activities to the seven Middle Eastern and North African countries members of the Mediterranean Dialogue, since its establishment in December 1994. On 1 October 2001, following another international competition, the Secretary General of NATO Lord Robertson appointed Nicola de Santis to the post of Information Officer for Mediterranean Dialogue and Partner Countries, in the Outreach and Partner Relations Section, Office of the Secretary General, OSG-OIP, in charge of NATO’s relations and projects with governments, political leaders, parliamentarians, academics and the media of the seven Mediterranean Dialogue countries. In September 2004, he became the NATO Public Diplomacy Division Coordinator for the Mediterranean Dialogue and for the Istanbul Cooperation Initiative with Arab Gulf states, since its establishment that year.

 

In January 2006, NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer, following promotion, appointed
Mr. de Santis to the position of Head Mediterranean Dialogue and Istanbul Cooperation Initiative Countries Section, in the NATO Public Diplomacy Division, reporting to the Assistant Secretary General for Public Diplomacy and to the Secretary General of NATO. In December 2010 he was appointed by NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen as the Head of the Middle East and North Africa Section in the Political Affairs and Security Policy Division of NATO’s International Staff.

 

In September 2019, he was appointed by NATO Secretary Jens Stoltenberg as Head of the Engagements Section, in the NATO Public Diplomacy Division, being responsible for leading and managing the Alliance’s public diplomacy activities, programmes and projects, to promote a better public understanding of NATO, its values, policies and activities.

 

For his distinguished international service, he was awarded the Cross of Grand Officer of the Order of the Merit of the Star by the President of Italy Sergio Mattarella, the Cross of Commander of the Order of the Merit of the Star by the President of the Republic of Italy Giorgio Napolitano and the Cross of Knight of the Order of the Civil Merit by the King of Spain Juan Carlos. His previous positions before joining NATO’s International Staff in Brussels, included: Research Fellow on Middle East Conflict and Terrorism at the Italian Society for International Organisations (SIOI) and at the Italian War College in Rome; Special Programs Officer at the NATO Defense College in Rome; Parliamentary Assistant to the Chairman of the Defense Committee and Secretary of the Intelligence Committee of the House of Deputies in the Italian Parliament; Vice President of the Young European for Security (YES) based in The Hague; Executive Committee member of the Atlantic Association of Young Political Leaders (AAYPL) based in Washington DC.