NATO Standardization Office

50°52′34.16″N 4°25′19.24″E / 50.8761556°N 4.4220111°E / 50.8761556; 4.4220111

NATO Standardization Office
AbbreviationNSO
Predecessor
  • Military Standardization Agency (MSA)
  • Military Agency for Standardization (MAS)
  • Office for NATO Standardization (ONS)
  • NATO Standardization Agency (NSA)
Formation1951 (MSA)
TypeMilitary alliance
PurposeMilitary standardization
HeadquartersBrussels, Belgium
Coordinates50°52′34.16″N 4°25′19.24″E / 50.8761556°N 4.4220111°E / 50.8761556; 4.4220111
Official language
English, French
Director (DNSO)
Zoltan Gulyas[1]
Parent organization
NATO
Websitenso.nato.int/nso/

The NATO Standardization Office (NSO) (former NATO Standardization Agency, NSA; French: Bureau OTAN de normalisation) is a NATO agency created in 1951 to handle standardization activities for NATO.[2] The NSA was formed through the merger of the Military Agency for Standardization and the Office for NATO Standardization.[3] During the Agency Reforms, the NSA was transformed to the NATO Standardization Office (NSO) on 1 July 2014, headed by the Director of the NATO Standardization Office (DNSO).[4]

The NSO is composed of military and civilian staff that was created to be responsible for standardization for both the Military Committee and the North Atlantic Council[5] It also provides standardization to NATO members military forces, with the goal of interoperability between member nations.[6] It is also the responsibility of the NSO to initiate, administrate over and promulgate a Standardization Agreement (STANAG).[7]

NSO headquarters is located at the main NATO headquarters at Boulevard Léopold III, B-1110 Brussels, which is in Haren, part of the City of Brussels municipality.[8]

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