NATO’s Joint Warfare Centre exercise STEADFAST DETERRENCE 2024 concluded in Stavanger, Norway with a number of deployed personnel supporting from the Joint Warfare Centre, Allied Maritime Command, and Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe – commonly called SHAPE. The exercise is the first Major Joint Exercise for the multi domain Allied Reaction Force, or ARF.
The Exercise is the result of an extensive planning process that began in February 2023 with military personnel from across NATO member nations and academics working in cooperation through a series of workshops. The outcome is a realistic scenario designed to simulate the employment of the Allied Reaction Force. The collaborative planning process incorporated strategic, operational, and tactical level factors.
This is an exciting opportunity to explore the Allied Reaction Force concept for the first time in a realistic setting that reinforces the new Regional Plans. During exercise development, we have identified real-world lessons that will strengthen these plans and concepts. Critical to the success of this has been the further operationalization of space and cyber domains, as well as integrating our newest Allies, Sweden and Finland, into our exercises.
Senior Exercise Control Advisor Major General (Ret.) Roger Lane
Exercise STEADFAST DETERRENCE 2024 is especially notable as it allows for NATO command elements to train non-Article 5 military deterrence operations. This training is linked to the requirements of the Deterrence and Defence of the Euro-Atlantic Area. The exercise is further intended to support Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe’s transition to a strategic warfighting headquarters, allowing Supreme Allied Commander Europe to orchestrate operations more effectively and efficiently than previously possible.
Of increasing importance is the ongoing war in Ukraine. STEADFAST DETERRENCE 2024 prepares the Alliance to better respond to developments in Ukraine by numerous avenues including training and security assistance support to the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
We support Ukraine not only because it will be a tragedy for Ukraine if President Putin prevails and wins and takes control of Ukraine. It will also be dangerous for us. Because then the message to President Putin and to the other authoritarian leaders is that when they violate international law, when they invade another country, they achieve what they want. And that will make the world even more dangerous. So it’s in our security interest to support Ukraine and ensure that Ukraine prevails as a sovereign independent nation. And therefore I expect the NATO leaders to agree a stronger NATO role for the support to Ukraine, and that’s why I suggested a strong … multi-year pledge.
Press conference by the NATO Secretary General with the Prime Minister of Bulgaria (27 May 2024)
STEADFAST DETERRENCE 2024 is a significant piece in NATO’s efforts to ever expand the Alliance’s capability to respond to the rapid occurrences of crises. STEADFAST DUEL 2024 is the next exercise in the series and will build on DETERRENCE’s momentum, continuing to the evolution of NATO’s multi domain Allied Reaction Force.
