2024-05-04 20:13:37
In Rostock, over 360 men and women from the Bundeswehr are training in an emergency on Friday. Germany has a special role to play in the NATO exercise “Steadfast Defender”.
The most important things at a glance
Russia’s war in Ukraine has had a significant impact on the understanding of security in Europe. NATO is becoming active again, Russia has become a danger, and so the Bundeswehr is practicing to secure the seaport in Rostock this Friday. The “National Guardian” exercise is part of the major NATO exercise “Steadfast Defender”.
The major maneuver currently underway is a warning to Putin, but at the same time also a self-assurance for NATO. The exercise is intended to show that the Western alliance can defend every member country.
t-online answers the most important questions about the Bundeswehr exercise and the NATO maneuver:
What is Steadfast Defender?
During the large-scale exercise “Steadfast Defender”, armed forces train on alerting, deployment to NATO’s external borders in the northeast and southeast, and combat. A total of around 90,000 soldiers in the defense alliance will be mobilized for this largest NATO exercise since the Cold War. Over 12,000 men and women from the Bundeswehr and 3,000 vehicles are involved.
Russia is not mentioned by name in the NATO strategy paper. But in “Steadfast Defender” the scenario of a Russian attack on various NATO members is played out, as t-online learned from security circles at the beginning of the year. So it’s about the so-called alliance case according to Article 5 of the NATO Treaty, in which soldiers and military equipment must be relocated to the east as quickly as possible. The article regulates the obligation of assistance in the alliance and states that an armed attack against one or more allies is considered an attack against all. So NATO is testing its ability to react; it is not an attack exercise.
Where is the NATO exercise taking place?
Many European NATO states are affected by the relocation exercise because the logistics chains go from the west to the north or east. NATO has chosen different critical points where a Russian attack could take place. That’s why “Steadfast Defender” is primarily about transporting ground troops first to Norway and, over the course of the months, to Romania and the Baltics. And as quickly as possible.
Germany will become a hub for national and international forces, tanks and other military equipment. “Due to its scope, the exercise will be visible to all citizens in Europe and especially in the German public,” the Bundeswehr wrote on its homepage in November last year.
The “visible peak phase” of Germany’s contribution to the NATO maneuver began at the end of April. Bundeswehr Inspector General Carsten Breuer explained: “In the coming weeks we will expect a lot from the population,” he announced. The military exercise has “effects on everyday life”. He asked that columns on the highways be given priority if possible.
Who is taking part in “Steadfast Defender”?
All 32 alliance countries are taking part in the four-month exercise. According to NATO information, in addition to the 90,000 soldiers, 50 naval ships, 80 aircraft and over 1,100 combat vehicles are taking part.
The Bundeswehr makes up a large part of this: more than 12,000 German soldiers will be deployed by the end of May. From mid-May, for example, the 10th Armored Division will deploy soldiers with combat vehicles to Lithuania in various ways. It is the largest exercise by German land forces since the beginning of the Russian war of aggression on Ukraine.
According to Breuer, it is the first time that Germany is the linchpin for the defense of Europe. He further explained: “The relocation of troops is core military business. Every move has to be perfect. Only what is practiced works in an emergency!” In the coming years, the Bundeswehr will carry out more and more large-scale exercises with the Allies in Germany.