COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. –
U.S. Space Command leaders welcomed Italian Admiral Giuseppe Cavo Dragone, Chair of the NATO Military Committee, and NATO Military Committee representatives to the USSPACECOM headquarters at Peterson Space Force Base, March 6, 2025.
The visit was part of a larger engagement to meet with senior military space officials, across Colorado Springs, March 5-7, 2025, to enhance the relationships of the alliance and to better understand space as an operational domain.
During their visit to USSPACECOM, Cavo Dragone and the NATO representatives received briefs on the command’s mission and operational threats from Gen. Stephen Whiting, USSPACECOM commander, and numerous senior leaders from the command, including Royal Air Force Air Commodore Darren Whiteley, USSPACECOM Strategy, Policy and Plans deputy director.
“The current strategic environment requires international cooperation in space. Like Gen. Whiting often says, 'space is a team sport.' Having representatives from the NATO Military Committee here at USSPACECOM and in Colorado Springs this week, emphasizes NATO’s commitment to upholding their responsibilities to readiness, deterrence, and warfighter effectiveness across the Alliance,” said Maj. Gen. Brian Gibson, USSPACECOM strategy, plans and policy director.
After visiting USSPACECOM, they transitioned to North American Aerospace Defense Command and U.S. Northern Command, where they heard from Royal Canadian Air Force Lieutenant-General Blaise Frawley, NORAD deputy commander.
Cavo Dragone highlighted the visit on his X account (@CMC_NATO), writing that while at NORAD and USSPACECOM “we discussed their vital and strategic role, for the whole Alliance, in protecting North America from aerospace and maritime threats. Grateful to Gen. Whiting and [Lieutenant-General] Frawley for valuable insights, and to [Maj. Gen. Thomas] Sherman [U.S. Air Force Academy] for a deep dive into space warfighter education.”
The three-day visit also included tours at the Cheyenne Mountain Complex, USAFA, Fort Carson and the Catalyst Campus, where USSPACECOM has an office to foster innovation, provide training, and collaborate with commercial partners to advance national security.
While at USAFA, the NATO representatives had the opportunity to observe cadets training in the academy’s Multidomain Lab and the FalconSat Lab.
The NATO representative from Greece, Lieutenant Colonel Ioannis Stavrou, said he has visited several academies, but had never seen an academy like USAFA with a field of study so specific to “airspace.” He enjoyed the tour of the Falcon Satellite Labs.
Service members from 1st Space Brigade, U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command, and the 4th Infantry Division provided static displays, demonstrations, and had subject matter experts available during the visit to Fort Carson. Royal Canadian Navy Vice Admiral Scott Bishop, Canadian military representative to the Military Committee at NATO headquarters, said the visit provided an opportunity to speak with U.S. Army and Space Force leaders about multidomain operations and how they use space effects to support operations.
“It’s been a real eye-opening experience for all of us, and we’re going to go back to NATO headquarters in Brussels with a deeper understanding of the space domain and how to do multidomain operations.”
He added that the trip demonstrated the importance of collective security.
“The United States is such a key Ally within NATO, I think this is just one of the many ways the United States demonstrates to all if its Allies in NATO that it is a committed partner,” he said.
Vice Adm. Shoshana Chatfield, the U.S. military representative to the NATO Military Committee, said the NATO Military Committee has been traveling around the U.S. “observing and learning about the ways space can enable the warfighter. NATO is a defensive alliance that protects a billion people, and we need to have the most and best quality equipment available.”
She added, “It’s been an honor of my life to sit behind the U.S. flag at the NATO Military Committee working to enhance the capabilities of the Alliance and to make sure that U.S. equities are always considered.”
As the U.S. continues to support its European Allies, USSPACECOM is dedicated to ensuring it remains focused on U.S. security threats and operating with Allies and partners as a team committed to collective defense capabilities.