Are COEs part of NATO?

The Military Committee (MC) Policy MC 0685 (Military Committee Policy for Centres of Excellence) states, “A COE is a multi-nationally or nationally established and sponsored entity, which offers recognized expertise and experience within a defined subject matter area to the benefit of the Alliance within the four pillars of NATO’s COE program.”

We may say that NATO-accredited COEs have one foot within NATO (because they are “part of the wider framework that contributes to the functioning of the Alliance”) and they have one foot outside NATO (because they are “not part of the NATO Command Structure or of other NATO entities”). This gives COEs greater flexibility in the relationships with other international and civilian entities.