NATO Holds Largest Air Drills in Europe Since End of Cold War

Source CFR

Twenty-five countries?are participating in joint military air exercises (NYT)?that began in Germany yesterday, including new North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) member Finland and prospective member Sweden. The drills, planned since 2018, were initially organized following Russia’s 2014 invasion and illegal annexation of Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula, but have taken on new relevance after Russia invaded Ukraine last year. The drills will occur at six German bases over twelve days.

Japan is an observer to the drills, which come as NATO is preparing documents that will elevate its partnerships with the Indo-Pacific countries of Australia, Japan, New Zealand, and South Korea,?Nikkei?reported. The leaders of those four countries are expected to attend a NATO summit in Lithuania in July.

Analysis

“The use of unmanned vehicles—both air and maritime—in the Russia-Ukraine?war has highlighted their value?for intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR); for targeting; and for attack,” the Atlantic Council’s Franklin D. Kramer writes. “At the [Lithuania] summit, NATO should take steps to enhance its deterrence and defense capabilities to meet the challenges presented by the Russian conventional military threat.”

“NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg has proposed opening a NATO liaison office in Tokyo next year, but the idea?has faced opposition from France, which fears it sends the wrong message to China, and that it may also raise concerns among members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations,”?Nikkei’s Ken Moriyasu and Takashi Tsuji write.