STANAG 2579
STANAG 2579 linguistic support for operations agreement
National authorities and NATO bodies registering acceptance of ALingP-1, and the suppliers whose contracts require linguistic support for NATO operations
STANAG 2579 is NATO's agreement by which participating nations register acceptance of ALingP-1, the Allied publication on linguistic support for operations.
- Edition
- 1
- Published
- 2011-09-12
What it is
STANAG 2579 is the NATO standardization agreement by which participating nations register their acceptance of ALingP-1, NATO's Allied publication on linguistic support for operations. The STANAG itself sets no linguistic-support requirements; it is the agreement, and the content lives in ALingP-1. This is Edition 1, promulgated 12 September 2011.
What the STANAG agrees to
The document states its aim plainly: "to register national acceptance of ALingP-1". Nations that ratify it "agree to use ALingP-1", and changes to the publication are accepted only once they have been "formally offered by the MCJSB, to national authorities concerned and have been agreed by them". The STANAG's own content is a short cover: an aim, an agreement to use ALingP-1, and the mechanics of ratification, reservation and implementation. Whatever linguistic support for operations actually involves sits in ALingP-01 itself.
How it binds
A STANAG binds a nation, not a supplier, and it binds through ratification rather than by existing. The promulgation letter records that the agreement "has been ratified by nations as reflected in the NATO Standardization Document Database (NSDD)". National staffs are addressed directly: "National staffs are requested to examine their ratification status of the STANAG and, if they have not already done so, advise the MCJSB NSA, through their national delegation as appropriate of their intention regarding its ratification and implementation." And the agreement is exact about departures: "No departure may be made from the agreement without informing the tasking authority in the form of a reservation." A supplier meets STANAG 2579 and ALingP-1 only when a contract or tender says so; the document does not address industry directly.
What implementation actually involves
The STANAG and ALingP-1 are "considered ready to be implemented when they have been received by the authorities and units concerned" - there is no separate technical sign-off described, and no fixed date by which every nation must comply. Ratifying nations have also agreed that their own "national orders, manuals and instructions implementing this STANAG will include a reference to the STANAG number for purposes of identification".
What the document does not cover
STANAG 2579 names no certification, audit or inspection regime, no numeric threshold, and no obligation addressed directly to a supplier or manufacturer. It names no other related document either: "Related Documents: none". Anyone looking for what linguistic support for operations actually requires in practice will not find it here; that detail is in ALingP-1.
How we help
Meeting STANAG 2579 means meeting ALingP-1, and that is operational and doctrinal work - staffing, briefing and documenting linguistic support for an operation - not something a compliance tool performs directly. What can be evidenced and controlled: the internal record of which edition of ALingP-1 a contract or programme is working to, and the document trail showing a linguistic-support requirement was tracked from tender through delivery.
ComplyTrain holds that record and the supporting audit trail in one controlled, versioned place, so they can be produced when a customer or a national authority asks for them.
What ComplyTrain does not do: it does not provide linguists, translators or interpreters, and it does not define what linguistic support for a given operation should look like. That is a doctrine and staffing decision, worked out in ALingP-1 and in how an organisation actually delivers the support, not in software.
Whatever else a contract requires alongside STANAG 2579 is set by the contract and the customer's quality clause, not by this page. Use the standards explorer to see what sits alongside STANAG 2579 and ALingP-1, or talk to us about how we help you evidence the processes behind it.
Questions
Is STANAG 2579 mandatory?
It binds nations that ratify it, not suppliers directly. A supplier meets it when a contract or tender invokes STANAG 2579 or ALingP-1, the publication it brings into force; outside a contract, it imposes nothing on industry.
What is the difference between STANAG 2579 and ALingP-1?
STANAG 2579 is the agreement: a short cover document by which nations register acceptance of a publication. ALingP-1 is the content itself, NATO's Allied publication on linguistic support for operations.
Is ComplyTrain certified against STANAG 2579?
No such certification exists. The document names no accredited body, notified body or scheme for certifying an organisation or product against it; it describes only a national ratification and implementation process.
Where do I get the document?
It is published free of charge by NATO through the Standardization Document Database, and is not sold by NATO or by us.