Spain is part of the NATO–Ukraine Joint Analysis, Training and Education Centre

• It is a unique unit within NATO, as it includes Ukrainian military and civilian personnel within its structure.

The NATO–Ukraine Joint Analysis, Training and Education Centre (JATEC) began operating in February 2025, in Bydgoszcz, Poland, following its approval at the Washington Summit in 2024. Its primary mission is to consolidate mutual learning between NATO and Ukraine, enabling comprehensive improvement through enhanced interoperability, national resilience, and civil–military integration.

Spain is a contributing member of this Centre and is responsible for the Capability Development section, which, among other tasks, focuses on reforming and modernising Ukraine’s defence industry in order to generate advanced military capabilities. This process ensures alignment with NATO requirements while promoting Ukraine’s self-reliance in defence matters.

The JATEC is structured around three functional pillars:

·         Lessons Learned Systematises the analysis of Ukraine’s operational experience in the conflict with Russia, feeding into NATO’s doctrinal development and conceptual adaptation. This feedback is essential for adjusting Allied structures to the evolving operational environment.

·        Interoperability and Digitalisation Through joint defence planning and training programmes, the Centre fosters Ukraine’s full integration into NATO procedures. 

·         Whole-of-Society Security Approach Inspired by the ‘Total Defence’ and ‘National Resilience’ models implemented by Nordic countries, JATEC promotes civil–military integration as a key component of modern defence, addressing the social, informational, and economic dimensions of conflict.

Cooperation with Ukrainian officers within the framework of JATEC has enabled the sharing of not only technical and doctrinal expertise, but also a deeper understanding of modern warfare, based in the first-hand combat experience of the Ukrainian Armed Forces. This dynamic facilitates a two-way transfer of knowledge, strengthening cohesion between Allies and partners.

In both structure and function, JATEC operates as a hybrid centre. Its civil–military governance model makes it a unique platform for addressing complex threats and coordinating appropriate, multidimensional responses. The experience gained will serve as a blueprint for this model in the future in other regions undergoing integration or facing geostrategic pressure. 

JATEC is not merely a support mechanism for Ukraine: it is a strategic platform that strengths NATO’s internal transformation. By incorporating lessons drawn from contemporary warfare into a modernised operational architecture, the Centre strengthens NATO’s ability to confront 21st-century challenges. Its very existence consolidates Ukraine’s role as a key operational partner, while preparing the way for future integration based on facts, shared standards, and national resilience.