The NATO International Staff is at the heart of transatlantic relations facilitating the work of the North Atlantic Alliance. It is a sizable international bureaucracy, under the authority of the Secretary-General, consisting of approximately 1250 civil servants from the various NATO nations. Surprisingly little is known, however, about its role in day-to-day operations. This paper examines to what extent the NATO International Staff affected the planning and implementation of the military operation in Libya in 2011. It relies on in-depth interviews with key NATO decision-makers. The contribution of this paper consists of a better understanding of policy-making wihin NATO and international organizations more broadly.
