NATO response to Russian sabre rattling

[vonGarvin]

Sigh yourself...

It's one thing to escape a Russian orbit, and another thing to enter a NATO one.

Options such as Partnership for Peace seem to work for Finland, Sweden, Austria, etc.

 

[jollyjacktar]

The 2nd ACR wants more firepower:

Military.com

And how long would this upgrade take?  Would it be completed in time for this crisis or the ready for the next one?

 

[vonGarvin]

And how long would this upgrade take?  Would it be completed in time for this crisis or the ready for the next one?

If their system is like ours.... :/

 

[jollyjacktar]

If their system is like ours.... :/

Ha, indeed.  Never Neverland.  :nod:

 

[CougarKing]

A first for Sweden's navy in this exercise:

Reuters

NATO starts anti submarine exercise in North Sea as tension with Russia rise

By Balazs Koranyi

ABOARD THE USS VICKSBURG, North Sea (Reuters) - NATO launched one of its biggest-ever anti-submarine exercises in the North Sea on Monday, inviting non-member Sweden for the first time, amid increasing tensions between Russia and its northern neighbors.

More than a dozen vessels from 11 countries are participating in the "Dynamic Mongoose" exercise. NATO will simulate detecting and attacking submarines in one of the most hostile seas, with rugged but shallow underwater canyons, rapid currents and unusually high sound pollution from freshwater pouring in from Norway's fjords.

(...SNIPPED)

 

[CougarKing]

US forces in Europe weakened by the Pacific Pivot?

Military.com

Shrinking US Army Forces in Europe Fuel Concerns of Russian Expansion

The Pentagon's restructuring of aviation units in Germany is stoking concerns that the dwindling U.S. presence in Europe is too weak to deter future Russian aggression.

The Defense Department announced April 29 that it is restructuring the 12th Combat Aviation Brigade and subordinate units in Illesheim, Ansbach, Wiesbaden and Stuttgart, Germany, as part of the Army's Aviation Restructuring Initiative in Europe.

The move will result in the reduction of approximately 1,900 U.S. military positions in Germany, according to a recent Army announcement.

(...SNIPPED)

 

[Edward Campbell]

US forces in Europe weakened by the Pacific Pivot?

Military.com

Yep. And that is China's reason for joining the Russians for combined naval exercises in the Mediterranean.

The Chinese believe that Obama's Asian Pivot is an aggressive* and provocative* move against China's (undeniably worrisome) rise.

China is supporting, pushing Russia in Europe because it wants Russia to pull America back from Asia.

_____
* Both those words have diplomatic meanings and I have seen both used in the semi-official Chinese media when the Asian Pivot is discussed.

 

[tomahawk6]

The Administration is planning to reduce the size of the military due to budgetary constraints.So if you have to cut units do so from Germany.I think its too early to reduce the force beyond the current structure.

 

[Oldgateboatdriver]

US forces in Europe weakened by the Pacific Pivot?

Military.com

How about the European nations step up and provide their own deterrent to Russia's future aggression?

Just saying' !!!

 

[Kirkhill]

How about the European nations step up and provide their own deterrent to Russia's future aggression?

Just saying' !!!

Just agreein`.

 

[MilEME09]

Just agreein`.

That will happen right about the time we stop relying on big brother 'Merica to save us every time and protect our waters and airspace on our own.

 

[daftandbarmy]

How about the European nations step up and provide their own deterrent to Russia's future aggression?

Just saying' !!!

The 20th Century proved they weren't capable of doing that kind of stuff on their own, so why should it be any different in the 21st?

 

[Kirkhill]

The 20th Century proved they weren't capable of doing that kind of stuff on their own, so why should it be any different in the 21st?

Och, just take their nukes away from them and let them revert to the Status Quo Ante while we become Jacksonians.  As the son of a Border clan  that were chased to Ireland by Jimmy the Saxt and First (a nod to the SNP) he knew something of family feuds and the odds of an outsider making any difference at all.

Now, if you like the occasional barney and want to keep your hand in then, from time to time you can choose a side and enjoy yourself for a bit.

 

[Cdn Blackshirt]

How about the European nations step up and provide their own deterrent to Russia's future aggression?

Just saying' !!!

Not sure we in Canada are sitting on any moral high ground to be making that argument too loudly....


Matthew. 

 

[Kirkhill]

Matt

You and MilEME09 are both right.  However I retain my personal right to my opinion regardless of how much a hypocrite my government makes me.

 

[MilEME09]

Matt

You and MilEME09 are both right.  However I retain my personal right to my opinion regardless of how much a hypocrite my government makes me.

I don't blame you, I blame the government for not taking national security seriously

 

[Cdn Blackshirt]

Matt

You and MilEME09 are both right.  However I retain my personal right to my opinion regardless of how much a hypocrite my government makes me.

Too funny Kirkhill.... 

 

[CougarKing]

US forces back in Georgia for exercises:

Reuters

Georgia hosts joint military exercises with U.S.

By Margarita Antidze

TBILISI (Reuters) - U.S. and Georgian forces began two weeks of military exercises in the South Caucasian republic on Monday, a move that is likely to irritate Georgia's former Soviet master Russia.

About 600 U.S. and Georgian soldiers were taking part in the maneuvers, for which the U.S. army for the first time transported an entire mechanized company, including 14 Bradley infantry fighting vehicles, across the Black Sea from Bulgaria.

"This represents a big step in our training and a big step in our interoperability," Brigadier General Mark Loeben, director of exercises at U.S. European Command, told reporters.

(...SNIPPED)

 

[McG]

Is NATO Ready for Putin?
Political hurdles hold NATO back — how convenient for Russian tactics.
Steve Saideman
CIC
04 May 2014

Vladimir Putin has challenged the United States and its allies over the past year. The annexation of Crimea and then the intervention in Ukraine have been very difficult as Russia has far more at stake in these places than does the North Atlantic Treaty Organization [NATO]. That changes quite dramatically if we move slightly west and consider Poland and the Baltic republics of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. These countries are members of NATO, so NATO must respond if Putin tries anything serious.

But NATO is not ready for Putin. While the stories of defense budget cuts do not help, NATO continues to have enough military capability to hold its own and then some in a fight with Russia. The real problem is a political one—that NATO members disagree about what is necessary to deal with Russia’s threats. Yes, a key output of the NATO summit last fall in Wales was the development a new Very High Readiness Joint Task Force that would move quickly during a crisis. This new NATO unit could move east to deal with Russia or south/southeast to deal with threats in North Africa or the Mideast.

However, the Very High Readiness Joint Task Force is crippled by two political realities. First, most of the countries lined up to lead the first few rotations are precisely those that were handcuffed in Afghanistan by caveats—restrictions on what their troops could and could not do—Germany, Spain and Italy. Second, in a crisis, the NATO commander, General Phillip Breedlove, would not have authority to deploy the NATO force. He would have to wait until the decision-making body of NATO, the North Atlantic Council, agreed that to release the force.

During the cold war, because of the threat of a surprise attack, the NATO commander had the authority under specific circumstances to take the steps he saw as necessary to deal with Soviet aggression. While we are not yet in a new cold war, the hybrid war tactics used by Putin—the little green men, the interrupting of telecommunications, and the rest aimed to present a fait accompli—work best when the opponent cannot make quick decisions and where ambiguity stymies a collective response. Right now, various allies are opposed to granting General Breedlove this kind of authority.

There is another way. General Breedlove not only commands NATO but also happens to be the commander of all U.S. forces in Europe. Using that authority, he can move American troops around Europe as he sees fit as long as the President and Secretary of Defense do not mind. Of course, this means that the U.S. needs to keep significant capabilities in Europe so that this general has some resources to deploy as things heat up. Recent stories of moving Apache helicopters out of Europe and back to North America due to budget cuts are exactly what we do not need.

The point here is not to win a war with the Russians, but to avoid one. Putin has consistently been looking for and taken advantage of weakness. He does not want World War III, but he does seem to want to break NATO. Presenting difficult choices is his primary strategy. It is time that we make his decision-making harder by making clearer, stronger commitments to our Eastern allies. If NATO as a collective organization is slow to respond, then individual countries, such as the U.S. and Canada, can and must respond.

http://opencanada.org/features/is-nato-ready-for-putin/

 

[CougarKing]

More NATO activity, in addition to the US Army detachment with Bradley IFVs in Georgia mentioned earlier above...

Defense News

Israel, Greece and US to Conclude Maritime Drill

TEL AVIV — Israeli, Greek and US naval forces are wrapping up a two-week annual exercise aimed at honing maritime proficiencies and interoperability for potential joint missions in the Mediterranean.

Now in its fifth year, the trilateral drill — dubbed Noble Dina — began April 29 in Souda Bay, Crete, and ends here Thursday after more than a week of anti-submarine warfare (ASW) training and joint maneuvers in international waters.

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Defense News

US Army Plans Show-of-Force Exercise in Romania

WASHINGTON — More than 350 American soldiers and 80 US Army vehicles — most of them Strykers — will begin a 400 kilometer "cavalry march" across Romania, with cover from US Air Force, this week, to kick off multinational exercises in Romania, the Pentagon announced Tuesday.

The Canadian, UK, US and Romanian exercises will also involve A-10 Thunderbolt II's from the 354th Expeditionary Fighter Squadron, which will demonstrate close-air-support by conducting multiple close passes above the convoy. The squadron belongs to the 355th Fighter Wing at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Arizona.

(...SNIPPED)