16 c. Guiding principles The conduct of the Luxembourg Defence is informed by a set of guiding principles: • Defence that is relevant and visible in the context of a coherent foreign policy The usefulness of the defence organization and the armed forces hinges on them having at their disposal a range of operational capabilities that are both deployable and actually deployed to exert a military effort capable of defending Luxembourg’s security interests in the context of a coherent foreign and national & international security policy. Having a modern defence apparatus underpins Luxembourg as a reliable international partner. The capabilities available to the Luxembourg Defence must cater for (1) contributions to common and collective defence missions, (2) participation in crisis-management missions and in rapid reaction groups in a sustained manner, (3) contributions to projecting stability in the context of the EU and NATO, and (4) performance of national missions. • Key partners Luxembourg’s military forces and capabilities are almost exclusively deployed in the context of multinational groups and incorporated into contingents of our key partners (Germany, Belgium, France, The Netherlands). Interaction with partners is consequently a main driver of defence development. Such cooperation shapes and guides capability development and operational engagement, and requires interoperability of forces to be systematically taken into account. In future, these partnerships are destined to be further consolidated and deepened.