NATO is preparing to conduct the largest military exercise since the Cold War. These maneuvers, which are expected to last several months, will involve 90,000 soldiers.
Maneuvers on a scale not seen since the Cold War. Some 90,000 NATO soldiers will participate next week and for several months in a major military exercise against the backdrop of the conflict in Ukraine.
These maneuvers, which will extend from the Atlantic to the North-Eastern flank of the Alliance, will take the form of a conflict scenario against a “comparable sized opponent”according to military officials, without directly naming Russia.
“The big difference from a year ago, I would say, is that a lot has happened in the armed forces and in defense organizations. What has not happened in our societies, It’s the understanding that it’s not just the military that must be able to operate in a conflict or war. It’s all of society that will get involved, whether we like it or not. (.. .) I’m not saying that things will be bad tomorrow, but we must understand that it is not obvious that we are at peace and that is why we have plans” explained Admiral Robert Bauer, Chairman of the NATO Military Committee, during the January 18 press conference.
Some 50 warships, 80 aircraft and 1,100 combat vehicles from European, North American and Swedish member countries will take part in this vast “war game”. The latest exercise of such magnitude, called “Reforge”took place in 1988, at the height of the Cold War.