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Chapter 12: The Military Command Structure The Military Structure The integrated military structure includes forces made available to NATO by the member nations participating in the structure, in accordance with prescribed conditions. These forces are currently organised in three main categories, namely Immediate and Rapid Reaction Forces, Main Defence Forces, and Augmentation Forces. Reaction Forces are versatile, highly mobile ground, air and maritime forces maintained at high levels of readiness and available at short notice for an early military response to a crisis. Immediate Reaction Forces consist of land, maritime and air components such as the Alliance's Standing Naval Forces in the Atlantic and Mediterranean and the Allied Command Europe (ACE) Mobile Force (Land) (AMF(L)) Headquarters. Rapid Reaction Forces are composed of other land, air and maritime components such as the ACE Rapid Reaction Corps Headquarters and the Multinational Division (Central) Headquarters (MND(C)). Main Defence Forces include active and mobilisable ground, air and maritime forces able to deter and defend against coercion or aggression. These forces comprise multinational and national formations at varying levels of readiness which include four multinational main defence corps: one Danish-German, one Dutch-German and two German-United States. Some of these forces could also be employed for sustaining "non-Article 5 operations". In addition to these forces, an agreement is in place setting out arrangements under which the European Corps (Eurocorps), consisting of units from Belgium, France, Germany, Luxembourg and Spain, can be made available to NATO in times of crisis for employment under the framework of both Main Defence Forces and Reaction Forces. In April 2000, similar arrangements resulted in the transfer of the operational command of the Kosovo Force (KFOR) to the Eurocorps as part of the command rotation, under the overall command of NATO. Augmentation Forces consist of other forces at varying degrees of readiness and availability which can be used to reinforce any NATO region or maritime area for deterrence, crisis management or defence. These forces are further delineated between those which come under the operational command or operational control of a Strategic Commander when required, in accordance with specified procedures or at prescribed times; and those which member states have agreed to assign to the operational command of a Strategic Commander at a future date, if required. Some of the above terms have precise military definitions. The terms "command" and "control", for example, relate to the nature of the authority exercised by military commanders over the forces assigned to them. When used internationally, these terms do not necessarily have the same implications as they do when used in a purely national context. In assigning forces to NATO, member nations assign operational command or operational control as distinct from full command over all aspects of the operations and administration of those forces. These latter aspects continue to be a national responsibility and remain under national control. In general, most NATO forces remain under full national command until they are assigned to the Alliance for a specific operation decided upon at the political level. Exceptions to this rule are the integrated staffs in the various NATO military headquarters; parts of the integrated air defence structure, including the Airborne Early Warning and Control Force (AWACS); some communications units; and the Standing Naval Forces as well as other elements of the Alliance's Reaction Forces.