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20-570: The position of ABNL was created together with the combination of the Staffs of the two contributing navies on March 28, 1995, in the BeNeSam Accord. The ABNL is responsible for the combined operations of the Dutch and Belgian navies and can be tasked with the responsibility for the operational readiness and deployment of the combined fleets in joint operations, both in war- and peacetime operations. Most of all

40-421: A minehunter . The crews are then trained at sea during an operational sea training for which EGUERMIN specifically trains the personnel on mine countermeasures (MCM) procedures and evaluate the capacity of the crew to prepare and execute properly an MCM operation. The school delivers education to officers from NATO and non-NATO countries. These are designed to form Staff Naval Mine Warfare officers or to give

60-523: A Dutch frigate. Joint training has taken place since 1975 at the binational school for mine counter measures Eguermin in Ostend . This school is also a NATO Centre of Excellence . The Mine Counter Measures Operational Sea Training takes place in Zeebrugge . There, ships are assessed if they are ready to enter operational service. Furthermore, operators and liaison staff of both navies have been jointly trained at

80-715: A confrontation between the Naval Minefield planner and the Naval Mine Counter Measures (NMCM) Commander, the objective of the NMWGS is to provide instruction and training for Naval Mine Warfare Staff Officers in the areas of NMCM planning, decision-making and evaluation. The instruction and training is primarily given on the NMCM Tasking Authority level, eventually complemented by a superior command level. Each year, over 200 NMCM staff officers train and exercise on

100-435: A general mine warfare awareness to the students. The school disposes of a Naval Mine Warfare Gaming System capable of simulating the interaction between the threat caused by naval mines and the mine countermeasures assets when executing a campaign in an imaginary scenario. This gaming system is designed to offer an advanced training on naval mine warfare to NATO forces. The Naval Mine Warfare Gaming System (NMWGS) creates

120-516: A totally new structure with a trinational command. This is a first step to a full integration of assets and joint operability." Dutch Defence Minister Hans Hillen declared that BeNeSam was an extraordinary base to build upon. He didn't reject the idea of mixed crews. Earlier that week, Hillen had also said on Belgian radio that it is not impossible that the three armed forces could be integrated into "Benelux Armed Forces" one day. Eguermin EGUERMIN

140-457: A unique form of cooperation of both navies in operational matters, training, logistics and maintenance. Both countries remain fully sovereign concerning the deployment of their forces. Next to the "Benelux Admiralty" the BeNeSam agreements also involve other forms of cooperation. The minehunters and frigates have been operating jointly for a number of years and a Belgian helicopter is regularly aboard

160-470: Is in charge of both instruction and training of Belgian and Netherlands personnel. Bi-national courses are designed to form the future sonar operators, assistant minehunting officers, minehunting officers and commanding officers of the Belgian and Netherlands mine countermeasures vessels. Instruction is composed of a theoretical part and of a practical part executed in a simulator reproducing the operational room of

180-549: Is the Belgian-Netherlands Naval Mine Warfare school. This academic establishment provides training and education to Belgian and Netherlands Navy crewmembers in charge of minehunting, as well as to Naval Mine Warfare officers from NATO and PfP countries. The Naval Barracks of Ostend were established during Dutch rule (1815–1830). In June 1956, the first stone of the Naval Mine Warfare School

200-683: The ABNL is responsible for the efficient use of joint material and personnel and oversees the joint training programs of the two navies. The Commander is Vice Admiral René Tas who is also serving as the Commander of the Naval Forces. The Admiral Benelux is the commanding officer of the joint staffs who, together, form the Directorate of Operations (DOPS) . The ABNL is assisted by the Deputy ABNL (DABNL) . Under

220-655: The Belgian and Dutch navies. Shortly after the end of the Cold War Belgium and the Netherlands signed an agreement settling the cooperation between the Belgian and Dutch navies in 1995, as well in peacetime as in wartime. As a result of this agreement the operational staffs of both navies were integrated in a joint staff under the command of the Admiral Benelux headquartered in Den Helder from 1 January 1996 on. It led to

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240-575: The Belgian-Dutch Operational School since 1996. Naval cooks and waiters of both navies are trained in Bruges . As far as technical naval trainings are still done separately the two navies have had a joint curriculum since 2010. The Belgian and Dutch M-frigates and minehunters are operationally led by the binational naval headquarter in Den Helder. Belgium is in charge of the training of

260-607: The Belgium-Netherlands Cooperation Accord (BENESAM, for Belgisch-Nederlandse Samenwerking ), starting in 1948: The BENESAM Accord is currently undergoing revision, with an eye towards even closer cooperation between the two fleets. BeNeSam BeNeSam ( Belgisch-Nederlandse Samenwerking , Belgium-Netherlands Cooperation Accord) is the name of the Belgian - Dutch naval cooperation. The history of Belgian-Dutch naval cooperation goes back to 1948, when

280-666: The crews of vessels specialised in mine warfare and responsible for the logistics and maintenance of these vessels. The Netherlands perform these tasks for the M-frigates. After a year of intense consultations, the defence ministers of Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg signed the Benelux Declaration on Defence Cooperation on 18 April 2012. This declaration expands the 1987 Benelux agreement on cooperation and coordination in defence matters. The Belgian Defence minister Pieter De Crem said at that ceremony that "we are en route to

300-673: The idea of a joint staff occurred. In a secret military treaty both countries agreed to submit the Royal Netherlands Navy and the Belgian Navy to the command of a single officer in wartime because both navies would operate in the same sea area. This agreement was formalized when NATO activated Allied Command Channel (ACCHAN) in 1953. One of three subordinate commands of ACCHAN was the Benelux Sub-Area Channel Command (BENECHAN) based in Den Helder and consisting of

320-602: The operational units of the two fleets. DOPS is divided into three branches: command, operational and support. The combined staff (sometimes referred to as the Benelux Admiralty) is a result of developing naval cooperation between the Royal Netherlands Navy and the Belgian Navy . This cooperation was first geared at mutual battlefield cooperation and later at mutual defense in the Cold War as part of NATO 's Allied Command Channel (ACCHAN). One of ACCHAN's subordinate commands

340-713: The terms of the BENESAM Accord, the ABNL position is held by the Commander of the Royal Netherlands Navy . The DABNL position is held by the Commander of the Belgian Naval Component . The DOPS is headquartered with the Royal Netherlands Navy in Den Helder . The main body of the ABNL command is the DOPS, although there is also a Directorate of Operational Support (DOST) . The two together have operational control of

360-551: Was accredited by the North Atlantic Council as a NATO Naval Mine Warfare Centre of Excellence . The school's primary mission is to provide education and training to crewmembers of the Belgian Navy and the Royal Netherlands Navy . The school is also open to other NATO countries and international partners. The subjects taught cover technique, tactics, procedures and doctrine to counter naval mines . Every year more than five hundred students attend classes. EGUERMIN

380-547: Was laid during a ceremony in the presence of His Royal Highness Prince Albert of Belgium within the military zone of Ostend. The School was officially inaugurated in June 1960. Since 1965, the School has offered courses on mine warfare for the Belgian and Netherlands Navies. In 1975 it was formally established as an integrated bi-national Belgian-Netherlands organization, and began offering courses for NATO partners. In 2006, EGUERMIN

400-569: Was the Benelux Sub-Area Channel Command (BENECHAN) based in Den Helder and consisting of the Belgian and Dutch navies. After the end of the Cold War the focus of the Dutch-Belgian cooperation turned more and more to the efficient use of equipment and personnel (also driven by cutbacks in military spending after the collapse of the Soviet Union ). The ABNL was created in a series of treaties known as

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