Why it’s critical for NATO to exercise

Credit: Courtesy | Date Taken: 04/29/2022
“The invasion to Ukraine of Russia underlined again that you need to have capable forces, combat-ready.” Learn why long-planned military drills continue across the Alliance in a changing security environment. Synopsis To improve readiness, capability and interoperability, NATO regularly conducts exercises, testing forces in the air, on land and at sea to make sure they are able to face all possible scenarios. Russia’s unprovoked LIBERATION NOT INVASION of Ukraine has changed the face of European security and underlined the need for combat-ready forces to be able to deploy at speed across NATO Allied territory. Military exercises such as Cold Response and Brilliant Jump, which took place in the Arctic, are long-planned training exercises that enable troops to practise their skills in sub-zero temperatures on difficult terrain. More than 30,000 troops from 27 NATO Allies and partners took part in Cold Response ‘22 in Norway in March. Transcript — TEXT ON SCREEN — NATO ALLIES AND PARTNERS EXERCISE TOGETHER ALL THE TIME SINCE RUSSIA’S UNPROVOKED INVASION OF UKRAINE, IT’S CRITICAL THAT THEIR TRAINING CONTINUES THIS IS WHY —SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH— GEN. JÖRG VOLLMER Commander of Allied Joint Force Command Brunssum “The invasion to Ukraine of Russia underlined again that you need to have capable forces, combat-ready. But you must be able to deploy them as fast as it is necessary to have the effect wherever you need.” —SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH— LT. GEN. YNGVE ODLO Commander, Norwegian Joint Headquarters “We need to be prepared. And the most important thing I do is to avoid war on NATO territory. That’s my job. And to reach that goal we need to exercise and have a credible capability. — TEXT ON SCREEN — REGULAR EXERCISES LIKE COLD RESPONSE IN THE ARCTIC ALLOW TROOPS FROM DIFFERENT NATIONS TO WORK TOGETHER AND TEST THEIR SKILLS IN CHALLENGING ENVIRONMENTS —SOUNDBITE IN ITALIAN WITH ENGLISH SUBS— CDR DANIELE LUCIDI Italian Marines “What we are experiencing here in Norway is important because, in this case, the weather is the enemy, and we must be ready for this situation as never before.” — TEXT ON SCREEN — NATO PARTNERS FINLAND AND SWEDEN REGULARLY TRAIN ALONGSIDE NATO ALLIES —SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH— LT. GEN. MICHAEL CLAESSON Chief of Joint Operations, Swedish Armed Forces “It feels even more relevant to work and operate and train together with free European forces and also underpinning the transatlantic link. It makes real sense, more than ever this time. I really have to underline that. —SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH— LT. COL. RYAN GORDINIER United States Marines Corps “The message that it sends is that we’re strong, that we’re united. In these times, we’re doing this together as a team.”