On 13 November 2025, representatives from the six OCCAR Member
States—Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and the United Kingdom—gathered
in Paris to formally sign an amendment to the OCCAR General Security Agreement
(GSA). The ceremony took place at “Michele Debré” room at the office of the
Secretary General for Defence and National Security.
Five Member States were represented by their ambassadors, while
France was represented by Mr. Nicolas Roche, Secretary General for Defence and
National Security. His presence underscored France’s role as host and
depositary of the OCCAR GSA.
Originally signed on 24 September 2004 in Paris, the OCCAR GSA
establishes the legal framework for exchanging and protecting of classified
information among Member States. As a politically and strategically significant
agreement, it reflects the deep mutual trust between OCCAR partners.
The amendment became necessary following reforms to national
defence secrecy protection in the United Kingdom and France, which introduced
changes to their respective classification systems.
This milestone marks the conclusion of a negotiation process
negotiated by the OCCAR Security Committee
and launched in 2016, aimed also at strengthening interoperability and
reinforcing mutual trust among Member States.
Beyond its symbolic significance, the amendment introduces two key
operational enhancements:
Security Classification Alignment: The revised agreement
incorporates national classification reforms implemented by the United Kingdom
(2015) and France (2019), ensuring OCCAR’s framework remains harmonized with
current national standards.
Enhanced Handling Capabilities: OCCAR is now authorized to handle
and protect the highest level of French classified information. This
advancement significantly boosts OCCAR’s capacity to support complex multinational
programmes involving highly sensitive data.
By updating the security classification levels and expanding
OCCAR’s protective capabilities, this amendment strengthens internal security
governance and reinforces OCCAR’s role as a trusted enabler of cooperative
defence initiatives across Europe.
