MOD showcases integrated wargaming expertise at NATO’s Premier Concept Development Conference
Cyber & Specialist Operations Command’s (CSOC) Integrated Warfare Centre (IWC) and Dstl have underscored Britain’s leading role in modern defence analytical wargaming.
This year’s Concept Development plus Wargaming Initiative for NATO Conference (CD & WIN 2025) helped to share fresh insights from concept development and wargaming, strengthen collaborative networks across NATO, and bring partners together to explore common challenges, exchange best practice, and advance collective understanding.
The NATO Conference, held in Verona, Italy helped to share fresh insights from concept development and wargaming, strengthen collaborative networks across NATO, and bring partners together to explore common challenges, exchange best practice, and advance collective understanding.
Through the joint efforts of the Defence Experimentation and Wargaming Hub (DEWH) and the Defence Wargaming Centre (DWC), part of Dstl, the UK delivered a clear message: collaboration, coherence, and shared learning are essential to preparing NATO for an era of disruptive change. The two organisations already work closely together, and, in 2024, they formalised their relationship with the signing of a partnership charter. The charter set out principles to ensure that the two centres operate coherently, consistently and efficiently in pursuit of a common set of goals.
NATO brought its concept development and wargaming communities together under one roof, creating a single forum for Allies, partners, industry, and academics to explore how the Alliance can think, plan, and adapt at pace. For the UK, the event offered a significant opportunity to strengthen relationships, promote the Analysis-Led Wargaming Framework (ALWF), and champion a One-Defence approach across the wider enterprise.
At the heart of the UK’s contribution were two presentations. The first showcased the UK MOD’s growing Wargaming Defence Enterprise, highlighting national capability, the role of the wargaming network, and opportunities to build bilateral and multilateral partnerships. The second introduced the Analysis-Led Wargaming Framework (ALWF) – a developing tool designed to give commissioners, analysts, and practitioners a shared, repeatable method for analytical wargaming. Together, the sessions reflected the UK’s commitment to advancing wargaming as both a profession and a defence enabler.
Captain Eugene Morgan OBE RN, Head of the Defence Experimentation and Wargaming Hub, said:
Our work at the DEWH shows that rigorous, analytical wargaming is essential to shaping credible future force options. By sharing methods and building partnerships across NATO, we’re accelerating the development of coherent, evidence-based decisions for the Alliance.
Throughout the conference, UK delegates emphasised several key themes shaping Britain’s approach to modern wargaming:
- Defence enterprise coherence and One-Defence collaboration
- Advancing rigorous analytical wargaming
- Championing diversity and inclusion to strengthen decision-making
- Sharing good practice and lessons learned across NATO
Presentation at this year’s Concept Development plus Wargaming Initiative for NATO Conference. Crown copyright.
As NATO confronts strategic competition, rapid technological change, and increasingly complex threats, wargaming is becoming a critical testbed for exploring decisions before they matter. The UK’s contribution in Verona reinforced the importance of human-centred, analytically grounded approaches that enable the Alliance to innovate with purpose, coherence, and agility.
Colin Marston, Dstl’s Chief Wargamer and Head of the Defence Wargaming Centre commented:
NATO’s future operational advantage will come from how well we think and learn together. Through the DEWH and the DWC partnership, the UK is committed to strengthening the wargaming enterprise, deepening collaboration with our Allies, and ensuring we make better, faster decisions in an increasingly complex world.
The DEWH and DWC’s joint presence demonstrated the UK’s determination to support a stronger, more connected wargaming community – one that underpins NATO’s ability to anticipate challenge, adapt at pace, and shape the future of warfare.