A/67/256 children affected by armed conflict into operations mandated through the Common European Security and Defence Policy, which seeks to ensure that child rights and protection concerns are systematically addressed in such operations. 54. Combined, the guidelines and the checklist provide multisectoral and wideranging guidance to European Union missions deployed in the context of the Common European Security and Defence Policy and to Union delegations based in conflict-affected countries. They also guide member States’ bilateral policy in conflict contexts. While the development of this policy framework is an achievement in itself, efforts must now be made by the Union and its member States to fully draw on the guidance that it provides. 2. North Atlantic Treaty Organization 55. Since 2009, the Office of the Special Representative has been engaging with NATO, at their respective headquarters and in the field, to strengthen cooperation and better protect children affected by armed conflict. Consequently, in its Chicago Summit Declaration of 20 May 2012, NATO Heads of State and Government stated their commitment to the implementation of Security Council resolutions on children and armed conflict and noted with concern the growing range of threats to children in armed conflict. Significantly, they also pointed out that NATO-led operations, such as the International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan, were taking an active role in preventing, monitoring and responding to violations against children, including through predeployment training and a violations alert mechanism, in collaboration with the United Nations. 56. In this context, in February 2012, NATO appointed its Assistant Secretary General for Operations as the high-level focal point for children and armed conflict, in charge of maintaining close dialogue with the United Nations and exploring further opportunities for mainstreaming child protection in NATO training and operations. This welcome development should facilitate the identification and dissemination of good practices, based on the experience of the International Security Assistance Force, to be integrated into NATO predeployment training. 3. African Union 57. African States have been key partners of the children and armed conflict agenda and cooperation with the African Union on child protection is taking place, albeit in an ad hoc manner. Support is being provided in the form of the deployment of child protection advisers to AMISOM and training for Union troop-contributing countries. Nevertheless, in the light of the Union’s increasingly multifaceted role in prevention, mediation and stabilization, a systematic approach to engagement with the children and armed conflict agenda is proposed. 58. Partnership with the African Union on the children and armed conflict agenda could take the form of technical support for the development of guidelines, capturing the tools at the Union’s disposal for the integration of child protection into various aspects of its work, including with regard to mediation and peace support operations. This could build on the Union’s existing protection mechanisms, such as the civilian casualty tracking, analysis and response cell of AMISOM. Training packages on children and armed conflict for civilian and uniformed personnel could 12-45308 15