Category Archives: NATO

One of the F-15E Strike Eagles deployed to Aviano AB for Steadfast Noon 2021. (All images: Claudio Tramontin)

NATOs yearly deterrence exercise, codenamed Steadfast Noon, kicked off on Oct. 18, 2021. Dozens of aircraft from across the alliance are currently deployed to Italy and will carry out joint training during the 1-week drills.

As already happened in the past, this years Steadfast Noon takes place alongside another exercise, dubbed Cross Servicing or X-Servicing, whose goal is to test the ability of each partner to service other nations aircraft at NATO airfield operating on their territory. Actually, it looks like that X-Servicing or any other exercises preceding or coinciding with the Steadfast Noons are somehow used to disguise the main one considered the political sensitivity of the nuclear mission in many NATO countries.

Anyway, the routine Steadfast Noon strike exercise is hosted by a different NATO country (or two) each year usually at two air bases where U.S. tactical B61 nuclear bombs are stored. This year, the two Italian air bases involved in the exercise are Ghedi AB and Aviano AB, in the northeastern part of the country. According to the Federation of American Scientists, 35 B-61s are stored at the two bases in Italy.

The flying activity (that needless to say does not involve any live armament), is carried out (in specific days made public by AIP Supplement) inside restricted airspace in central and northeastern Italy and the Adriatic Sea.

Since they are sort of back-to-back exercises, both X-Servicing and Steadfast Noon involve the same aircraft on the same bases: the missions are flown by DCA (Dual Capable Aircraft) aircraft from Belgium, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Turkey and the U.S. that are able to perform either conventional or theater nuclear missions carrying the B61 bomb along with non-nuclear aircraft that support the mission under the SNOWCAT (Support of Nuclear Operations With Conventional Air Tactics) program, which is used to enable military assets from non-nuclear countries to support the nuclear strike mission without being formally part of it.

The DCA aircraft committed by the nuclear capable European air forces are always the same, since they are the only ones configured to carry the B61: German and Italian Air Force Tornado IDS; Belgian, Dutch and Turkish F-16s. The American participation involves the tactical assets based in Europe: F-16s and F-15Es.

For what concerns the non-nuclear and support assets, the 2021 iteration of Steadfast Noon/X-Servicing drills see the participation of five Czech Air Force JAS 39 Gripens and three Polish Air Force F-16s, along with NATO E-3A AWACS and Italian Air Force G550 CAEW (Conformal Airborne Early Warning).

In particular, the Belgian, Turkish and Polish F-16s, along with the Czech Gripens and U.S. F-15E are deployed to Aviano AB, while Ghedi AB, home of the Italian Tornado fleet, hosts the Dutch F-16s and German Tornados.

Even though, NATO is usually quite tight-lipped when it deals with this kind of exercise, you can get an idea of the flying activity thanks to some OSINT: flight tracking websites show some of the assets taking part in the drills as they operate inside the restricted airspaces announced by relevant NOTAMs (Notice To Airmen). Then, you can also get some interesting photographs to cross correlate the rest of the information, thanks to the aircraft spotters taking shots outside the main operating bases.

David Cenciotti is a freelance journalist based in Rome, Italy. He is the Founder and Editor of The Aviationist, one of the worlds most famous and read military aviation blogs. Since 1996, he has written for major worldwide magazines, including Air Forces Monthly, Combat Aircraft, and many others, covering aviation, defense, war, industry, intelligence, crime and cyberwar. He has reported from the U.S., Europe, Australia and Syria, and flown several combat planes with different air forces. He is a former 2nd Lt. of the Italian Air Force, a private pilot and a graduate in Computer Engineering. He has written four books.

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NATO's Annual Nuclear Strike Exercise Underway In Southern Europe - The Aviationist

Russia says it's suspending its mission at NATO and ordering the closure of the alliances office in Moscow in retaliation to NATOs expulsion of Russian diplomats

By JIM HEINTZ Associated Press

October 18, 2021, 8:40 PM

3 min read

MOSCOW -- Russia on Monday suspended its mission at NATO and ordered the closure of the alliance's office in Moscow in retaliation for NATO's expulsion of Russian diplomats.

Earlier this month, NATO withdrew the accreditation of eight Russian officials to its Brussels headquarters, saying it believes they have been secretly working as Russian intelligence officers. NATO also halved the size of Moscows team at its headquarters from 20 to 10.

Moscow has dismissed the accusations as baseless. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov delivered Moscow's response Monday, announcing the suspension of Russia's mission at NATO and the closure of the alliance's military liaison and information offices in the Russian capital.

He charged that the alliance's action has confirmed that NATO isn't interested in any kind of equal dialogue or joint work, adding that we don't see any need to keep pretending that there could be any shift in the foreseeable future.

Lavrov added that contacts between the Western military alliance and Russia could be maintained through the Russian Embassy in Belgium.

"As a result of NATOs deliberate moves, we have practically no conditions for elementary diplomatic work and in response to NATOs actions we suspend the work of our permanent mission to NATO, including the work of the chief military envoy, probably from Nov. 1. Or it may take several more days, Lavrov said.

Russia's Foreign Ministry said in a separate statement that NATO's actions confirm that they are not interested in an equal dialogue and joint work to deescalate military-political tensions."

The alliances line towards our country is becoming more and more aggressive, the ministry noted. "The Russian threat is inflated in order to strengthen the internal unity of the alliance, to create the appearance of its relevance in modern geopolitical conditions.

NATO spokesperson Oana Lungescu said: "We regret these steps. NATOs policy towards Russia remains consistent. We have strengthened our deterrence and defense in response to Russias aggressive actions, while at the same time we remain open to dialogue, including through the NATO-Russia Council.

German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said in Luxembourg that this decision taken in Moscow will further prolong the difficult situation were in, this frosty period thats been going on for some time, adding that this will put a further serious strain on relations.

Germany has repeatedly pushed for dialogue with Russia within NATO over the past years, Maas noted. "We have to recognize once more, that Russia apparently no longer is. That is more than regrettable.

The Russian mission isnt based at NATOs headquarters, but in a leafy neighborhood in the south of the Belgian capital, Brussels.

NATO suspended practical cooperation with Russia in 2014 after it annexed Ukraines Crimean Peninsula, but has kept channels open for high-level meetings and for military-to-military cooperation. But the NATO-Russia Council, their preferred forum, has only met sporadically since then.

Amid a strain in ties, Moscow has repeatedly voiced concerns over the deployment of NATO forces near Russian borders, describing it as a threat to its security. Russia and the alliance also have blamed each other for conducting destabilizing military exercises near the borders.

Raf Casert in Brussels and Vladimir Isachenkov in Moscow contributed to this report.

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Russia suspends its mission at NATO, shuts alliance's office ...

MOSCOW Russia plans to cease its diplomatic engagement with the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, the Russian foreign minister said on Monday, in the latest sign of unraveling relations between Moscow and the West.

Though significant on a diplomatic level, the announcement was not apparently accompanied by any military moves by Russia threatening European security. And Moscow still maintains diplomatic relations with the individual governments in the alliance.

The decision will end a post-Cold War experiment, never very successful, in building trust between Russia and the Western alliance, established decades ago to contain the Soviet Union, which officials in Moscow accused of later encroaching on former Soviet territory.

By early next month, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said, Russia will halt the activities of its representative office at NATO headquarters in Brussels and withdraw diplomatic credentials from emissaries of the alliance working in Moscow.

NATOs response was muted. We have taken note of the decision by Russia to suspend the work of its diplomatic mission, a spokeswoman, Oana Lungescu, said. NATOs policy toward Russia remains consistent. We have strengthened our deterrence and defense in response to Russias aggressive actions, while at the same time we remain open to dialogue.

The breakoff of diplomatic ties also comes as President Biden is seeking to strengthen the European alliance after former President Donald J. Trump denigrated members as freeloaders on American military spending and threatened to withdraw.

Relations between Moscow and the West have been strained for years, but the immediate impetus for the Russian move was a spy scandal.

Earlier this month, NATO ordered eight Russian diplomats to leave Belgium by Nov. 1, saying they were undeclared intelligence officers. The alliance also reduced the size of the Russian representative office.

In response, Mr. Lavrov said Russias entire diplomatic mission would leave by Nov. 1, or a few days after that date.

Because of NATOs targeted steps, proper conditions for elemental diplomatic activity dont exist, he said. In response to NATOs actions, we are halting the work of our permanent representation to NATO, including the work of the main military envoy.

Relations with the alliance had in any case long ago gone off the rails, he said. NATO had already twice reduced the size of the Russian delegation, in 2015 and 2018, he said. On the military level there are absolutely no contacts taking place, he said.

He said NATO had set up a prohibitive regime for Russian diplomats in Brussels by banning them from its headquarters building. Without visiting the building, he said, they could not maintain ties with alliance officials.

Mr. Lavrov suggested the expulsions of Russian diplomats had come as an unwelcome surprise, as he had met in New York just days earlier with the alliances secretary general, Jens Stoltenberg, and discussed de-escalating tensions.

He in every way underscored the honest, as he said, interest in the North Atlantic alliance in normalizing relations with the Russian Federation, Mr. Lavrov said.

NATO could still convey diplomatic messages to Russias embassy in Brussels, if necessary, Mr. Lavrov said.

In addition to diplomatic frictions, military tensions have also escalated in recent years, including last spring when Russian troops massed along Ukraines border, ostensibly for a military exercise.

In the immediate post-Cold War era, Russia had claimed a moral high ground in relations with NATO. Moscow, Russians noted, had dismantled its alliance of that era, the Warsaw Pact, while NATO in contrast expanded into former Soviet and East Bloc nations. Russia has since initiated new military alliances of its own, with former Soviet states and with China.

Relations were also strained by NATOs intervention in the Balkan wars in the 1990s against Serbia, a Russian ally.

Russia responded, for a time, by dispatching an outspoken nationalist, Dmitry O. Rogozin, now the director of Russias space program, as its emissary to the alliance in Brussels, where he became a thorn in the side of NATO officials.

The problems simmered on. NATOs view of Russia dimmed further after Russia intervened militarily in Ukraine in 2014. Ukraine is not a NATO member, but Russias aggressive moves there revived worries of an expansionist Kremlin agenda in Eastern Europe.

In announcing the halt to Russias diplomatic relations with NATO, Mr. Lavrov said Monday that the alliance didnt show any interest in equal dialogue or joint work. He said there was no need to go on pretending that in the foreseeable future anything will change.

Monika Pronczuk contributed reporting.

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Russia Breaks Diplomatic Ties With NATO - The New York Times

On Monday (18 October 2021), NATOs Deputy Secretary General Mircea Geoan met with Hungarys Minister for Innovation and Technology Lszl Palkovics at NATO Headquarters to discuss how the Alliance will maintain its technological edge.

They exchanged views on how NATO is investing in the latest technologies and measures to further enhance innovation. The Deputy Secretary General thanked the Minister for Hungarys commitment to innovation and helping to ensure that NATO is ready to face emerging and disruptive technologies in the future.

Mr Geoan noted that NATOs work includes the adoption of a new cyber defence policy, and agreement on the launch of a Defence Innovation Accelerator for the North Atlantic (DIANA) and the creation of a NATO Innovation Fund, which will help enhance cooperation with academia and start-ups developing dual-use technologies. These topics will be addressed at the upcoming meeting of NATO Ministers of Defence on 21 and 22 October.

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NATO Deputy Secretary General meets with Hungary's Minister for Innovation and Technology - NATO HQ

No third country has the right to veto Ukraine's accession to NATO. Ukraine is free to determine its future without external interference.

No third country has the right to veto accession to NATO. Ukraine, as I have already mentioned, is free to determine its future foreign policy without external interference. I will say that our support for Ukrainian sovereignty is unwavering, and we will continue to work together to ensure that we are in the right place and that Ukraine can defend itself, U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said at a joint briefing with Minister of Defense of Ukraine Andriy Taran in Kyiv, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.

He assured that the United States remained steadfast in its support for Ukraine's defense reform, which will help meet the criteria for full-fledged NATO membership, in particular, greater Ukraine's defense capabilities, strengthened democratic civilian control over the Armed Forces, better personnel management, and more.

As reported, Dmitry Peskov, a spokesman for the Russian president, said that Ukraine's accession to NATO was the worst-case scenario for Russia.

Commenting on the statement, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Dmytro Kuleba stressed that the Russian Federation did not have a voice in the discussion on Ukraine's future NATO membership.

Photo credit: Ministry of Defense of Ukraine

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Pentagon chief: No third country eligible to veto Ukraine's accession to NATO - Ukrinform. Ukraine and world news

ANKARA

Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) leader Devlet Baheli on Oct. 19 accused a group of NATO members of creating alliances against Turkey.

Greece is forming a front against Turkey by establishing alliances in the Aegean and eastern Mediterranean, he said at his partys parliamentary group meeting, pointing at the fact that the neighboring country recently ramped up its armament.

He recalled that Greece increased the number of its warplanes this year and signed a defense cooperation agreement with France on Sept. 28.

Isnt this agreement a move against NATOs principles? he asked and said making armament deals within NATO is a message to Turkey.

This is a sneaky and covert deal. How will the binding force of the provision expressed in Article 5 of NATOs founding agreement be preserved? he asked.

He recalled that the United States and Greece signed an agreement extending the bilateral defense cooperation agreement for another five years.

Im telling you frankly: A trench is being dug against Turkey within NATO. Turkey has been threatened. The U.S. Secretary of State defined Greece as the pillar of stability in the region. Greece is the face of disrepute and crisis politics that needs to be corrected and disciplined, he said.

When we look at the agreements with France, Greece and the U.S., it is understood that the Athens administration will follow even more hostile policies in the Aegean and Mediterranean, he added.

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MHP leader warns of alliances within NATO against Turkey - Hurriyet Daily News

On 14-15 October 2021, the Chair of the NATO Military Committee, Admiral Robert Bauer, was in Iceland where he met with key Icelandic representatives, including the Permanent Secretary of State, Mr Martin Eyjlfsson, and the Director General of the Directorate for Security and Defence, Ms Brynds Kjartansdttir. He also visited the NATO Control Reporting Centre Keflavk (CRC) and NATO Anti-Submarine Warfare Hangar.

The Chair of the Military Committee, Admiral Rob Bauer started his official Icelandic programme by visiting the NATO Control Reporting Centre Keflavk (CRC), where he was briefed on its role in providing air surveillance functions to the Alliance. With Icelands strategic position, it only makes sense that they would keep an eye on the skies and the seas. While the CRC plays an important role for the Icelandic Air Policing Mission the airbase serves as a hub for air and maritime operations for NATO and the US, clarified the Admiral. He also visited the USN Mobile Tactical Operations Center (MTOC), the NATO Anti-Submarine Warfare Hangar (ASW) and a US P8 aircraft.

The Admiral then headed back to Reykjavik to meet with the Permanent Secretary of State, Mr Martin Eyjlfsson and the Director General of the Directorate for Security and Defence (Chief of Defence), Ms Brynds Kjartansdttir. Discussions focused on security in the Arctic and the High North as well as the importance of protecting sea lines of communication and monitoring the Greenland-Iceland-UK gap.

Following meetings with a representative from the National Commissioner of the Icelandic Police, where Admiral Bauer was brief on the the important role played by civil preparedness and civil emergency services, he visited the volunteers of the Reykjavik Air Ground Rescue Team. The Admiral remarked that Iceland is a country of great beauty but drastic weather being unprepared can turn ugly fast. Thats why a quick and efficient response is the only solution in some situations. The work done by the Icelandic Coast Guard, the National Police and the Air Ground Rescue Team helps save lives.

The Chair concluded his visit with talks with Njll Trausti Fribertsson, First Deputy Chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee of Alingi and Chair of the Icelandic delegation to the NATO Parliamentary Assembly.

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The Chair of the NATO Military Committee visits Iceland - NATO HQ

On Tuesday (12 October 2021), seven Afghan citizens arrived in Luxembourg to start a new life. Earlier that day, they left the temporary facilities in Kosovo, where they had been accommodated since their evacuation from Kabul in August and where troops from the NATO Response Force had been helping with housing, care and support, including through individual and family living headquarters, dining facilities, medical and dental centres, meeting rooms, recreation areas for adults and children, and religious accommodations.

We are grateful to the representatives of Kosovo institutions and to the personnel of the Allied Joint Force Command Naples and Task Force Noble for their great work and coordination with our authorities to ensure a smooth process for the resettlement of these Afghan citizens to Luxembourg. We warmly welcome them and support them as they start a new life, Ms. Natacha Gomes, Charge daffaires a.i. at the Embassy of Luxembourg in Kosovo, said.

Thanks to Allies joint efforts, around 2,000 Afghans who worked with NATO, and their families, were evacuated from Kabul in August, as part of the largest evacuation mission in NATO's history. NATO worked around the clock to coordinate evacuations and the NATO Senior Civilian Representative Ambassador Stefano Pontecorvo and his staff played a key role to this effect. Over the course of two weeks, more than 120,000 people were flown out, on hundreds of Allied flights. Troops from the US, UK, Turkey, and Norway played a key role in securing the airport and operating a field hospital, while around 800 NATOstaff maintained key operations such as fuelling and communications. Those joint efforts continue. Over the last weeks, 80 former Afghan employees and their families resettled in Norway, more than 100 in the United Kingdom, around 100 in Germany, and several hundred more in various, other Allied countries.

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More Afghans who worked with NATO being resettled in Allied countries - NATO HQ

On 14 October 2021, the NATO International Military Staff hosted Partner Nations for informal workshops to discuss a series of topics pertaining to NATOs new Strategic Concept. This new format, to be held bi-annually, aims to improve the dialogue between NATO and Partners.

Chair of the NATO Military Committee Admiral Rob Bauer welcomed participants to this new meeting format and encouraged them to take advantage of it. This new meeting demonstrates how important these partnerships are to NATO and how much we value your unique perspectives, stated the Chair. Additionally, he thanked the Director General of the International Military Staff, Lieutenant General Hans-Werner Wiermann for initiating this new forum and Major General Francesco Diella, Director of the Cooperative Security Division and his staff for leading the charge.

Major General Diella then invited Nations to break-out into smaller groups and join the topic-specific workshops. We are organising these sessions to provide Partners with an opportunity to share their observations, thoughts and ideas on specific topics where we think we could be doing more together topics like information-sharing, emerging technologies and innovation or even NATO missions and operations, added the Cooperative Security Director.

After the different workshops, participants were invited to come together again in a question/answer session and for a summary conclusion chaired by IMS Director General Lieutenant Wiermann. This has been an incredibly productive day. The input received will help us contribute and enrich our input to the NATOs new Strategic Concept. Together, we can help shape a document that will provide overall direction and guidance for years to come, concluded Lieutenant General Wiermann. He closed the meeting by thanking participants for their contributions and for embracing this new meeting format.

At the initiative of the NATO International Military Staff, and under the auspice of its Cooperative Security Division, this new meeting will be held bi-annually and provide an informal setting for a constructive dialogue on partnerships, military cooperation and other relevant topics.

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NATO Partners invited to discuss the upcoming Strategic Concept - NATO HQ

BiH Presidency member Milorad Dodik said that he intends to fight for his goals politically, however, if there is a NATO reaction, he will invite friends who will not leave them stranded.

The leader of the SNSD party believes that something like that would be considered aggression, and the Republika Srpska would then have the right to call on its friends to protect them.

We do not want any escalation of the problem. This is a political issue and a political struggle. Political, not war decisions are being made here, Dodik said.

He added that RS will defend itself by passing regulations, such as the one on withdrawing consent for the BiH Armed Forces.

But, if necessary, we will defend ourselves with our forces. If they come to say that NATO will intervene, we will ask for the help of our friends who told us clearly and loudly that they never leave their friends stranded, he said.

Dodik did not want to reveal who those friends were.

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Dodik: if NATO intervenes on the Territory of RS, we will call Friends to protect us - Sarajevo Times