Source: Shephard Media
NATO’s largest exercise since the end of the Cold War will see 50,000 troops deploy into the first snows of a Norwegian winter to show Russia that the alliance is ready to repel any attack, officers said Tuesday.
Officially, November’s Trident Juncture exercise will simulate an attack from a fictional country, but it will bring a huge force into one of Moscow’s neighbours just months after Russia’s vast Vostok war games.
The head of NATO’s Allied Joint Force Command, US Navy Admiral James Foggo said that the exercise “must show NATO is capable to defend against any adversary. Not a particular country, anyone.”
And he noted that Norway has a frontier with Russia and that the huge force, backed by 150 aircraft, 60 ships and some 10.000 vehicles, would demonstrate that they can mobilise quickly to defend an ally.
“The core exercise area is 1,000 km from the Russian border,” said Norwegian General Rune Jakobsen, who will run the exercise headquarters.
“There should not be any reason for the Russians to get scared or see this as anything other than a defensive exercise.”
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