NATO AAP-6 PDF

SECTION I - INTRODUCTION

GENERAL

The Military Committee Terminology Standardization Programme (MCTSP) was originally established as the NATO Military Terminology Standardization Programme by the NATO Standing Group in February 1954 which:

assigned responsibility for the coordination of NATO military terminology to the Military Agency for Standardization (MAS) (predecessor of the NATO Standardization Agency (NSA));

outlined the initial steps for processing terminology;

provided general terms of reference (TOR).

The TOR have been periodically changed and updated to provide for the participation of all NATO nations. In 1970 the Air Board, MAS, promulgated NATO Standardization Agreement (STANAG) 3680 - NATO Glossary of Military Terms and Definitions (English and French) (AAP-6) to assist Service Boards, working groups and panels of experts in considering terminology within their purview.

The object of STANAG 3680 as stated in its 5th Edition (Amendment 1) "is to register national acceptance of Allied Administrative Publication No 6 (AAP-6)". The details of the agreement state that "participating nations agree to use AAP-6 and any subsequent changes published periodically as the primary glossary for NATO terms of military significance and their definitions".

In 2004, the Military Committee (MC) formalized the name change of the NATO Terminology Conference to Military Committee Terminology Conference (MCTC). The NATO Military Terminology Standardization Programme was also renamed MCTSP. The MCTC received tasking authority from the MC to standardize terminology under the purview of the MC.