Category Archives: Baltics

300 Lithuanian troops to take part in NATO exercises in Poland and Baltics

16 Wednesday Oct 2013

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English: Emblem of the . Deutsch: Wappen der N...

Emblem of the NATO Response Force (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

by Lithuania Tribune, October 4, 2013

300 Lithuanian troops will take part in the so-called Chapter 5 exercises in Poland and the Baltic States, designed to test preparedness of the NATO Response Force to respond to an international crisis…

…The Steadfast Jazz 2013 exercises will involve about 6,000 personnel from 20 NATO member countries and partner nation Ukraine. During the event, 3,000 staff personnel from Joint Force Command Brunssum and other allied joint staffs will take part in a command and control exercise at the Adazi Base, Latvia. In addition, 3,000 troops will be involved in a live exercise at Poland’s Drawsko Pomorskie Training area…(more)

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Zapad 13 – Observations and perspective

15 Tuesday Oct 2013

Posted by in Baltics, European News, Foreign Policy, Military and Defense, Russia

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English: Zapad-2009 military exercises. Русски...

Zapad-2009 military exercises. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

By Karlis Neretnieks (Ret MG, Swedish Army) , Royal Swedish Academy of War Sciences, October 14, 2013

Russia´s military capabilities are rising fast. The exercise Zapad 2013 clearly shows that the Russian Armed Forces have left the deplorable state they were in some ten years ago, and that the lessons learned from the Georgia conflict in 2008 are being implemented. The new command structure with Strategic Commands and leaner tactical units is being tested. It is not yet perfect, but Zapad 2013 will give valuable lessons…

…Altogether we see a rapidly increasing Russian capability to mount large scale, complex, military operations in its neighbourhood, coordinated with operations in other areas. It would be a mistake to see this just a problem for the Baltic States. It should have implications for most of Russia´s neighbours, and also for other parties interested in the security and stability in the Baltic Sea region…(more)

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Zapad 2013: the Belarusian and Russian armies’ anti-NATO integration exercises

26 Thursday Sep 2013

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Russian Army T-90A during a training exercise.

Russian Army T-90A during a training exercise. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

By Andrzej Wilk, Centre for Eastern Studies (OSW), Sept. 25, 2013

On 20-26 September, the active (military) phase of the strategic-level exercises held by the armed forces of Russia and Belarus, entitled ‘West 2013’, were held. This was the largest joint exercise both armies had ever carried out; including the ranges in the western part of Belarus, Kaliningrad and the Baltic Sea, over 22,000 soldiers took part in it. For the Russian army, ‘West 2013’ did not constitute a particular challenge, coming as it did as part of the larger series of exercises arranged in parallel in the Murmansk oblast and the Barents Sea. For the Belarusian army, however, this year’s joint exercises are the biggest undertaking in military training it has carried out for two decades. Above all, ‘West 2013’ was a test of the integration of the Belarusian and Russian armies, and particularly of the former’s ability to act within the norms and structures of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation.

The scenario and nature of the ‘West 2013’ exercises leave no doubt that the Russian/Belarusian forces are training to conduct regular military operations, and their potential opponent is the NATO countries bordering with Russia and Belarus. In political terms, however, we can observe a certain duality in Russia’s approach to NATO. On the one hand – thanks to the information about the exercises reported in media – we see that Moscow is aiming to provoke a negative reaction from its western neighbours. But on the other – from its joint non-military exercises (the ‘Vigilant Sky 2013’ anti-terrorist exercises held in parallel with ‘West 2013’) – it has tried to allay NATO’s concerns regarding the objectives of Russia’s military policy towards Europe… (more)

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Commentary: Meanwhile, Over at the Massive Russian Military Buildup

25 Wednesday Sep 2013

Posted by in Baltics, European News, Russia

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English: THE BARENTS SEA. A military exercise ...

A military exercise of the Russian Northern Fleet. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

By Kristopher Rikken, ERR News – Estonian Public Broadcasting, Sept. 25, 2013

With Zapad 2013, Russia’s answer to NATO‘s Steadfast Jazz military exercise, continuing in parts east, ERR News profiles a piece that originally ran on February 13.

One year ago, Russia unveiled a new doctrine: then presidential candidate Vladimir Putin openly avowed an intention to radically expand and upgrade the Russian military. As of February 2013, the country continues to pursue the biggest military buildup in years in its western military district, which is flush up against Baltic borders and already easily the country’s most powerful in conventional military terms…

It’s unclear how much NATO’s own actions are driving the escalation, but only one side (Russia) has mentioned a “pre-war state,” which has drawn a response…

For a year now, the main theme in the Russian military doctrine has been a “prewar situation.”

“It took just three years for the ‘prewar state’ meme to make it from a retired colonel’s interview to a speech delivered by the President to the Federal Assembly… (more)

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Bloomberg: Russian War Games on Baltic Border Spark Security Fears

24 Tuesday Sep 2013

Posted by in Baltics, European News, Foreign Policy, Russia

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Post-Soviet states in alphabetical order: 1. A...

Post-Soviet states in alphabetical order: 1. Armenia, 2. Azerbaijan, 3. Belarus, 4. Estonia, 5. Georgia, 6. Kazakhstan, 7. Kyrgyzstan, 8. Latvia, 9. Lithuania, 10. Moldova, 11. Russia, 12. Tajikistan, 13. Turkmenistan, 14. Ukraine, 15. Uzbekistan (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

By Ott Ummelas & Aaron Eglitis, Bloomberg, Sept. 20, 2013

Baltic officials said regional security had been weakened as Russia led military exercises on their doorstep involving almost 12,000 troops.

A week of land and sea maneuvers dubbed “Zapad 2013,” or “West 2013,” began today as part of biennial exercises with Belarus, Russia’s Defense Ministry said on its website. Troops in both nations tested coordination in destroying “illegal armed formations,” it said.

Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, which regained independence in 1991 after half a century of Soviet rule, joined the North Atlantic Treaty Organization in 2004 amid Russian opposition. NATO has held exercises in the Baltic region since 2010, while Russia has opened new military bases and deployed more troops on its western border in recent years, according to the defense ministers of Estonia and Latvia… (more)

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The security concerns of the Baltic States as NATO allies

04 Wednesday Sep 2013

Posted by in Baltics, European News, Foreign Policy, Military and Defense

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Baltic states, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania

Baltic states, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

By Dr. James S. Corum, Strategic Studies Institute and U.S. Army War College Press,The three Baltic States of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania hold a special position among the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) nations, as they are the three full members of the Western Alliance that were once republics of
the Soviet Union… (more)

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Exercises, Training to Posture NATO for Future Challenges

06 Tuesday Aug 2013

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By Donna Miles, American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, Aug. 5, 2013 – Sharpened by the past decade of combat operations, NATO forces are launching an ambitious effort to build on that foundation and to enhance the capabilities of the NATO Response Force, the top U.S. and NATO commander reported.

“After more than 10 years of experience fighting together in Afghanistan, we have achieved an unprecedented level of cohesiveness among allies and partners,” Air Force Gen. Philip M. Breedlove, NATO’s supreme allied commander for Europe and commander of U.S. European Command, said in his new blog posting…(more)

 

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Exercise Saber Strike 2013 – Multinational exercise hosted in the Baltics

16 Tuesday Jul 2013

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Baltic states, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania

Baltic states, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Saber Strike is a long-standing, multilateral, multifaceted, U.S Army Europe-led security cooperation exercise primarily focused on the three Baltic States. The exercise spans multiple locations in Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia and involves approximately 2,000 personnel from 14 countries.

In addition to major contingents from Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia, Saber Strike 2013 includes participation from Finland, France, the United Kingdom, Poland, NATO’s Multinational Corps Northeast (MNC NE), U.S. Air Forces in Europe (USAFE), the U.S. Army and Air National Guard, U.S. Army Cadet Command and observers from Norway and Sweden.

The exercise trains participants on command and control as well as interoperability with regional partners and is comprised of a brigade-level command post exercise and computer assisted exercise, as well as company-level field and situational training exercises. It also features the integration of U.S. close air support with partner nation ground forces and the demonstration of U.S. Expeditionary Medical Support (EMEDS) capability.

This theater security cooperation exercise provides commanders and their staffs practical experience in organizing, controlling and supporting coalition operations and allows the United States, NATO and participating nations to demonstrate their own unique roles in contributing to regional and global stability by strengthening international military partnerships, enhancing multinational interoperability and preparing participants for worldwide contingency operations.

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Steadfast Jazz 2013 collective defense exercise in the baltics, Poland

22 Monday Apr 2013

Posted by in Baltics, European News, Foreign Policy, Military and Defense

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English:

Baltic States (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

BNS via Lithuania Tribune, April 22, 2013

Up to 5,000 NATO soldiers will attend Steadfast Jazz 2013, an exercise to be held in the Baltic States and Poland this fall, a NATO officer has said… (more)

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A Nordic defensive shield

14 Thursday Mar 2013

Posted by in Baltics, European News, Foreign Policy, Military and Defense

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English: Map of the geographic situation of No...

Map of the geographic situation of Nord Baltic Eight countries. Nordic countries (Demark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden) are painted in blue and Baltic countries (Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania) are painted in green. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

By Edward Lucas, European Voice, March 14, 2103

Look at a map and the case for closer co-operation between NATO and its non-member neighbours Finland and Sweden seems obvious. Like the alliance’s most vulnerable members, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, they have problems with Russia. By virtue of their membership of the European Union, both Finland and Sweden are committed to collective defence of a kind. Close co-operation with NATO simply makes it more effective. The shibboleths about non-alignment and neutrality look anachronistic… (more)

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