As the headquarters of the Allied Forces in Europe announced, the US dock landing ship Gunston Hall left its port in Norfolk, Virginia, on Wednesday to then begin its journey to Europe following a series of operations. A Canadian frigate will also soon make its way to Europe from Halifax, it said.
90,000 soldiers involved
Around 90,000 soldiers are expected to take part in the large-scale maneuver called Steadfast Defender by the end of May. The first major live exercise will begin on February 11, according to headquarters in Mons, Belgium. “The alliance will demonstrate its ability to strengthen the Euro-Atlantic region through transatlantic troop movements from North America,” said NATO Supreme Commander Christopher Cavoli on Wednesday.
According to information from the German Press Agency, the scenario of the major maneuver is a Russian attack on Allied territory, which leads to the declaration of the so-called alliance case according to Article 5 of the NATO Treaty. The latter regulates the obligation to provide assistance in the alliance and states that an armed attack against one or more allies is viewed as an attack against all.
Biggest exercise since 2018
The largest NATO exercise to date since the end of the Cold War was organized in 2018 with a focus on Norway. Around 51,000 soldiers were involved. The last NATO maneuvers that were larger than the exercise now planned took place before the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991. At that time there was, among other things, the “Return of Forces to Germany” series of maneuvers. In 1988, for example, around 125,000 soldiers were involved.
According to its own information, the German Bundeswehr will participate in Steadfast Defender with, among other things, a four-stage large-scale maneuver called Quadriga 2024. More than 12,000 soldiers are expected to be deployed with him by the end of May and, in particular, will be training skills for quickly deploying forces to NATO’s eastern flank. From mid-May, for example, the 10th Panzer Division will deploy soldiers with combat vehicles to Lithuania in various ways and demonstrate their fighting skills in a battle there.
