Key Summary
- NATO Drills in Nordic Territory: Commencement of drills involving over 20,000 soldiers from 13 NATO nations, highlighting new membership status of Finland and Sweden.
- Military Exercises in Northern Norway: Part of NATO’s Steadfast Defender initiative, involving 90,000 soldiers, showcasing unity and military strength with various machinery and equipment.
- High-Level Visits and Commitment to Defense: President-elect of Finland and Crown Princess of Sweden inspect the drills, emphasizing the Nordic countries’ commitment to increasing military defense.
- Shift in Nordic Security Policies: Historically neutral Finland and Sweden lean towards NATO membership due to events in Eastern Europe, with Finland gaining approval and Sweden overcoming opposition from Hungary.
- Geopolitical Implications and Deterrence: NATO drills signal a unified front against Russia, potentially escalating tensions but reinforcing deterrence and reassuring allies amidst the current war climate.
New membership in NATO has been launched through the commencement of drills in the Nordic territory. The drills start on Monday and end March 15th with over 20,000 soldiers from the thirteen NATO nations of Belgium, Britain, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden and the United States being represented. These drills highlight the new membership status of the northern nations, specifically Finland and Sweden. This military response is led by Norway and is made up of 4,000 Finnish and 4,500 Swedish armed forces, the highest amount of participation in NATO ever seen by the countries.
This military event, currently being called the Nordic Response, is just one of the many series occurring in NATO at the moment. The total initiative is the Steadfast Defender and consists of 90,000 soldiers. Last week there was another series labeled the Joint Warrior led by the UK Navy. Although the Steadfast Defender is a new exercise series, the act of conducting training in the Arctic weather of northern Norway is not a new concept, but rather a biannual occurrence called the “Cold Response.” The drill will take place on land and sea, with the participating troops split approximately in half for both locations. Beyond the soldiers, there will be many different types of machinery and equipment including around 50 submarines, frigates, corvettes, aircraft carriers, and various amphibious vessels as well as around 100 fighter jets, transport aircraft, maritime surveillance aircraft and helicopters. Thus, this event showcases not only the unity of the NATO nations but the military strength of the collective powers.
Furthermore, Alexander Stuff, the new president-elect of Finland, will inspect the drill with Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre on the 7th. This is significant as it will be the first foreign trip of the President since his official inauguration on the 1st. Similarly, Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden will be visiting an airbase in the northern part of the country on the 11th, further showcasing the Nordic countries’ commitment to increasing military defense.
While Finland and Sweden had joined NATO’s Partnership for Peace decades ago, neither country has historically aligned themselves in such a manner with Western nations, arguably only joining the peace program as a vehicle for cooperation. Additionally, due to the geographical location of the countries, the vast majority of citizens when polled stated that they were against a formal admission into NATO or alliance with the West mostly due to fear or retaliation. However, four days after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, a survey was released showing that over 50 percent of the Finnish population favored official membership into NATO. Following this action, previous Finnish president Sauli Niinisto visited DC to discuss the United States support of Finland’s accession into NATO.
During the Madrid Summit in June 2022, Finland and Sweden were officially invited to join NATO. However, even with the invitation, the process of becoming a full-fledged member of the Alliance can be lengthy as it requires approval of all member states. This is evident as Sweden was only finally approved as a full membership this week due to a “hold-out” by Hungary.
Due to the current events in eastern Europe, the drills occurring in Norway are extremely important. Not only do they aid in preparation of skills and endurance for difficult weather, but it illustrates the ability of NATO to undertake a joint operation on a large-scale. Moreover, it indicates closer military cooperation and a shift in security policies of the NATO nations in the eyes of Russia. Given the location of the drills and the motivation behind the push to join NATO, the Nordic Response could possibly provoke Russia to respond with increased military maneuvers and heightened the tensions with the region.
Regardless of the possible implication of the drills, the cohesive strengthening of the NATO defenses will be crucial in deterring increased aggression as well as reassuring allies and the international community of the forces Russia is up against. This conducting of exercises when combined with a creditable military presence in the nations bordering Russia and the modernizing of defense infrastructure will be pivotal steps in combating the current war. Likewise, NATO will need to continue the promotion of dialogue and cooperation amongst the states to not only reinforce the image of the organization, but to address general security concerns within the nations to provide internal benefits to those aligned.
The hosting of military exercises by the Nordic States of NATO exemplifies the value of the new membership of Finland and Sweden and takes a strong stance against Russia. Though there is fear of further Russian backlash in this act of military unification, the members of the alliance stand to benefit from the show of strength. NGF will continue to follow the actions of the NATO nations and Russia’s response as new developments occur.
Author: Ella Powers
