BRUSSELS: NATO on Wednesday started its biggest military exercise since the Cold War with a United States warship departing the Washington for transit across the Atlantic to alliance territory in Europe.
The Steadfast Defender 24 exercise, spanning several months, involves approximately 90,000 troops and aims to assess NATO’s defenses in response to Russia’s actions in Ukraine.
General Christopher Cavoli, NATO’s Supreme Allied Commander Europe, stated, “The alliance will demonstrate its ability to reinforce the Euro-Atlantic area via trans-Atlantic movement of forces from North America.”
Steadfast Defender 2024 is intended to showcase NATO’s unity, strength, and determination to protect its members, values, and the rules-based international order.
The exercise simulates NATO’s collective response to a potential attack from a rival, such as Russia, and comprises a series of smaller individual drills spanning from North America to NATO’s eastern flank near the Russian border. The participation includes 50 naval vessels, 80 aircraft, and over 1,100 combat vehicles.
This exercise, the largest since the 1988 Reforger drill during the Cold War, reflects NATO’s efforts to enhance its defenses in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
The alliance has deployed thousands of troops to its eastern flank and formulated comprehensive plans, the most extensive since the collapse of the Soviet Union, to safeguard against potential Russian aggression.
