CIOR

Background

The Interallied Confederation of Reserve Officers, commonly referred to by its French acronym CIOR, represents the interests of over 1.3 million reservists across 36 participating nations within and beyond NATO. It is the World’s largest military reserve officer organisation.

Founded in 1948 by the reserve officer associations of Belgium, France and the Netherlands, CIOR is now a NATO-affiliated, non-political and non-profit umbrella organisation of member nations’ national reserve officer associations.

The CIOR meets twice a year, in the summer and winter, and its Committees examine issues relating to reserve forces.  Typical issues of interest include the contribution of reserve forces to international operations, the re-integration of reservists within their respective communities following deployment abroad, and employer support to reservists.

In addition to their roles as reserve officers, many individual delegates of CIOR are highly accomplished business and industrial leaders, public servants and academics.  They are therefore in a unique position to contribute to a better understanding of security and defence issues in the population as a whole, as well as bringing civilian expertise and experience to the tasks and challenges facing reserve forces in NATO.

Structure

The CIOR is structured around a constitution that provides for a rotating presidency, a CIOR Executive Council comprised of vice-presidents of participating nations, key committees and several annual events that promote training, education and professional development. The presidential term is two years in length.  The Netherlands took over the presidency on 12 July 2008.

CIOR committees include the Defence Attitudes and Security Issues Committee (DEFSEC), Civil / Military Cooperation Committee (CIMIC), Public Affairs Committee (PA), Military Competitions Committee (MILCOMP), Legal Committee, Partnership for Peace Committee (PfP), Language Academy Committee, Winter Seminar Committee, and the Young Reserve Officers Committee (YROW).

Roles

The CIOR has two main roles

1.     To provide advice on Reserve issues and support to the NATO Alliance
2.     To foster the professional development of reserve officers.

Support to NATO

Advice to NATO on Reserve issues:  CIOR is a voice for reserve issues to the NATO Alliance and provides advice on the best utilisation of reserve forces in a variety of operational settings, in addition to studying and promoting harmonization in the roles, duties and rights of reservists in Allied nations.  CIOR also directly contributes to NATO’s goals by promoting and enhancing cooperation and interoperability amongst reserve forces within the Alliance and its partners.

Enabler to NATO Transformation: Transformation in NATO means coordinating this effort within an Alliance of 26 sovereign nations, navigating the challenges posed by the diversity of military cultures, languages, geo-political considerations, unique national security concerns, and economic factors.  CIOR brings its collective expertise to bear in support of these challenges by bringing nations together, developing important cross-cultural dialogues and providing a forum for collaborative approaches to common problems.

The relationship between CIOR and NATO is fully defined in NATO Military Committee (MC) 248/1.

Professional Development
CIOR is an organisation committed to professional development, and it provides a variety of high-calibre and cost-effective programs that benefit individual reservists, their member nations, and NATO as a whole.  By raising awareness of contemporary reserve issues and promoting interoperability and cooperation while respecting national traditions, CIOR develops individual reservists to serve national and international interests.

Some of the key opportunities for professional development uniquely available through CIOR include the following:

Military Competition (MILCOMP)
Over 150 athletes participate in CIOR's military competition each year.  Established in 1957, it is an internationally recognised competition that is focused on military skills that truly challenge the leadership and physical robustness of reservists from across NATO and its partners. It is highly relevant to deployed operations as it trains and tests real skills that officers need to master for success on the current battlefield (physical fitness, teamwork, land navigation, marksmanship, combat first aid, and Law of Armed Conflict).

Young Reserve Officers Workshop (YROW)
Annually, about 60 young reserve officers attend this week-long workshop, concentrating on current defence and security issues that relate to reserve force issues within NATO and its partners.  It is designed to be a first international exposure for young officers to colleagues from the Alliance and its Partners.  YROW is an enriching experience for these young officers, who are the future of the Alliance, providing them an opportunity to establish professional relationships that often last throughout their careers, and offering a strong foundation on which to build their NATO experience.

CIOR Language Academy (CLA)
The CIOR Language Academy teaches English and French as a second language, emphasising a NATO military lexicon.  The students are reserve officers of NATO member nations, new Member and Partner nations of Eastern and Central Europe and the Mediterranean Dialogue countries.  Through the Language Academy, students are provided an essential and indispensable tool to carry out international NATO business – the ability to communicate in one of NATO’s two official languages.  Established in 2000, the Language Academy is growing each year and trains up to 100 students yearly from almost every nation of Eastern and Central Europe.

Winter Seminar
Held annually, with the direct support and cooperation of the Konrad Adenauer Foundation, about 70 participants attend this four-day activity that explores current defence and security issues.

Partnership for Peace Seminar (PfP)
CIOR's Partnership for Peace Committee holds an annual seminar for Partner members, which is held in Partner countries.  This activity is designed to develop knowledge and understanding of the Alliance, as well as to gain a better understanding of the structure and organisation of reserve forces and associations within the Alliance.  This activity in support of Partner nations is well aligned with NATO's objectives of cooperation, partnership and inclusion.

Conclusion

More than ever, under the mounting threats to our collective security, there is a growing demand for the Reservist’s flexibility, qualifications, cost effectiveness and motivation.  There is also an increasing requirement for integration with Regular service military and for a heightened interoperability with Allies.  CIOR has proven itself to be a force multiplier by directly contributing to NATO in this regard.  By continually adapting to the changing security environment, CIOR will continue to be a strong voice for reservists and to play an important role within the Alliance and beyond.

Vacancies

The United Kingdom Reserve Forces Association has vacancies on the following Committees

1.      Defence Attitudes and Security Issues Committee (DEFSEC)

Requirement: Ideally have done an Op tour, mid seniority RNR Lt/TA Capt equivalent, 5 years+ experience

2.      Civil / Military Cooperation Committee (CIMIC)

Requirement: Ideally have done a CIMIC role

3.      Legal Committee

Requirement: Must be legally qualified or legally experienced

4.      Partnership for Peace Committee (PfP)

Requirement: Suitable for a YO with 2-3 years experience

5.      Language Academy Committee Instructors

Requirement: Ideally hold TEFL qualification

Those interested in applying for these posts should submit a CV and covering letter illustrating their suitability for their preferred role to the UKRFA Secretariat at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it by 31 Dec 08. Interviews will be held in early 2009.

Successful candidates will need to be prepared to attend the following events annually

    * Summer Congress – 1 week in Jul/Aug, usually in Europe. Next year’s will be held in Sofia, Bulgaria, 3-9 Aug
    * Mid Winter Meeting in Feb (3 days)
    * In Between Meetings in April and October in the Netherlands (3 days each)
    * UKRFA Staff Meetings x 6 per year (usually in London on a Saturday)
    * UKRFA AGM in December (London, Saturday)

More information about CIOR is available through the website at www.CIOR.net

CIOMR

What is CIOMR?

The Interallied Confederation of Medical Reserve Officers was founded in Brussels in 1947 by Belgium, France and the Netherlands. Nowadays the reserve officers associations of most NATO countries are members. Also organisations of non-NATO countries are (associate) members: Austria, the Republic of South Africa and Switzerland. Delegates are physicians, dentists, pharmacists, veterinarians, nurses, technicians and medical service corps officers. CIOMR meetings are held twice a year, in conjunction with CIOR Summer and Winter Symposiums. CIOMR and CIOR cooperate closely in various fields.

What are the objectives of CIOMR?

    * To establish close relationships with medical reserve personnel and services within the alliance
    * To study and discuss subjects which are of military medical importance
    * To promote effective cooperation with the medical services of the active forces by providing information and feedback through its civilian medical expertise
    * To participate as an actively involved observer in the plenary meeting and the Working Group on Medical Training of COMEDS, the NATO Committee of Chiefs of Medical Services, and the Joint Medical Committee (JMC) plenary meeting

Who can be a member?

    * National reserve military medical associations or their equivalents from all NATO member countries can become full members
    * National reserve military medical associations or their equivalents from non-NATO member countries can become associate members (PfP countries, countries of the Mediterranean Dialogue etc.)
    * Only one national association per country will be admitted
    * Each member of CIOMR may send a delegation consisting of 6 members, one of them must be a medical officer
    * Application for membership should be made to the Executive Committee

Vacancies

The United Kingdom Reserve Forces Association requires two medical officers to join the CIOMR. Those interested in applying should submit a CV and covering letter illustrating their suitability to the UKRFA Secretariat at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it by 31 Dec 08. Interviews will be held in early 2009.

Successful candidates will need to be prepared to attend the following events annually

    * Summer Congress – 1 week in Jul/Aug, usually in Europe. Next year’s will be held in Sofia, Bulgaria, 3-9 Aug
    * Mid Winter Meeting in Feb (3 days)
    * In Between Meetings in April and October in the Netherlands (3 days each)
    * UKRFA Staff Meetings x 6 per year (usually in London on a Saturday)
    * UKRFA AGM in December (London, Saturday)

More information about CIOMR is available through the website at www.CIOMR.net.

To find out more information about CIOR you can download a PDF guide here.