Steadfast Defender is NATO’s largest exercise since the Cold War, with Sweden participating with at least 4,500 soldiers and sailors.
Russia, however, sees the exercise as a provocation and say it is “another element of Western hybrid warfare”.
NATO’s Steadfast Defender 2024 exercise involves more than 90,000 troops from the US and other member states and has been described as the largest since the Cold War. The exercise, which runs through May, involves more than 50 ships ranging from aircraft carriers to destroyers, more than 80 combat aircraft, helicopters, drones and at least 1,100 combat vehicles.
The stated purpose of the exercise is to practice a hypothetical attack from the east against a NATO country and how to respond collectively. Although Russia is not mentioned by name, it is clear that the primary target is a Russian attack.
The Russian side is highly critical of the show of force, and the country’s acting foreign minister, Alexander Grushko, believes that it is more of a provocation and a form of hybrid warfare.
– These exercises are another element in the West’s hybrid war against Russia.
Grushko further argues that the Steadfast Defender exercises mark an “irrevocable return” of NATO to Cold War-style machinations.
The Swedish Armed Forces have announced their intention to participate in the exercise with at least 4,500 troops.
– The exercise will clearly demonstrate the Alliance’s determination and ability to implement and enforce the concept of deterrence and defense throughout the Euro-Atlantic area, said Carl-Johan Edström, head of Operations Command at the Swedish Armed Forces (Försvarsmakten) .
