 Knighted as a Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath in the 1996 New Year Honours, Smith was General Officer Commanding Northern Ireland from 1996 to 1998.His final assignment, initially as an acting general, was as Deputy Supreme Allied Commander Europe between 1998 and 2001, covering NATO's Operation Allied Force during the Kosovo war, and the development of the European Security and Defence Identity.His general's rank was made substantive on 1 January 1999.