Posted on 10/20/2022 10:03:50 AM PDT by jacknhoo
With the prospect of a Russian tactical nuclear strike in Ukraine on everyone’s mind, the United States military and several NATO allies are coming together for one of the largest nuclear exercises in Europe.
Steadfast Noon 22 brings together 14 NATO allies and partners with over 60 aircraft, including nuclear-capable fourth- and fifth-generation fighter jets and B-52 Stratofortress strategic bombers.
Nuclear Drills for NATO: Steadfast Noon 22 More than 60 aircraft, including F-15E Strike Eagle, F-16 Fighting Falcon, F-35 Lighting II fighter jets, and B-52 Stratofortress strategic bombers, will test the transatlantic alliance’s nuclear deterrence. However, the aircraft won’t be using any live nuclear munitions.
Steadfast Noon is to be an annual exercise and isn’t taking place as a response to the Russian aggression in Ukraine or the repeated Russian threats of a nuclear strike against the Ukrainian forces.
“This exercise helps ensure that the Alliance’s nuclear deterrent remains safe, secure and effective,” NATO Spokesperson Oana Lungescu said in a press release.
NATO insists that the exercise is part of the transatlantic alliance’s routine training program and it is not linked to any world events in any way.
In its press release that announced the start of the exercise, NATO highlighted the transatlantic alliance’s new strategic concept that was adopted by the leader of the NATO countries during the summit in Madrid in June.
NATO highlights that Steadfast Noon 22 is part of the strategic concept that stresses that “the fundamental purpose of NATO’s nuclear capability is to preserve peace, prevent coercion and deter aggression.”
Moreover, the transatlantic alliance states that “as long as nuclear weapons exist, NATO will remain a nuclear alliance. NATO’s goal is a safer world for all; we seek to create the security environment for a world without nuclear weapons.”
Steadfast Noon 22 is taking place between October 17 till the end of the month. NATO countries rotate host duties for the exercise every year; this year, it is the turn of Belgium to host Steadfast Noon.
The Nuclear Specter Over Europe The failures of the Russian military in Ukraine have brought the specter of nuclear warfare to the European continent. As the country with the largest nuclear arsenal (more than 6,000 nuclear warheads), Russia has repeatedly threatened to deploy some of its nuclear munitions against Ukraine.
Although Russian President Vladimir Putin and other senior Russian officials have publicly set some red lines that could trigger a nuclear strike, such as attacks on Russian territory, for example, they have not delivered on their threats, at least so far.
If a nuclear strike did indeed happen, a highly likely scenario is that the Russian military would launch a tactical nuclear munition somewhere in Ukraine where the Ukrainian forces are the most threatening in order to make it seem that the attack was purely on a military target.
As the war continues to go progressively bad for the Russian forces and as the Ukrainian military continues to liberate large swaths of territory and edges closer to Crimea, which has been annexed by the Russians since 2014, the threat of a Russian nuclear strike will hover on everyone’s mind.
Expert Biography: A 19FortyFive Defense and National Security Columnist, Stavros Atlamazoglou is a seasoned defense journalist specializing in special operations, a Hellenic Army veteran (national service with the 575th Marine Battalion and Army HQ), and a Johns Hopkins University graduate. His work has been featured in Business Insider, Sandboxx, and SOFREP.
Come on, man. If we have peace negotiations then they might have to stop the money laundering.
We did regular NBC training when I was in. I doubt any of that or SOP has changed. Probably just noticed now given current events.
I was in Reforger that year, but this is an annual event that was also conducted under President Trump.
WWI began because the Ruling Class got their noses bent and demanded their people lay down their lives for it.
WWII began because Germany was so damaged from the Treaty of Versailles, they thought war was the only way out.
This is all about the Ruling Class.
It is important to pull your knees in tight when you have your head between them.
Duck and cover..or,bend over and kiss your asp goodbye?⁹
if it was 1945.
Failure to plan is planning to fail.
Piss poor planning produces poor performance.
This is ridiculous - any sane person would have called this off at this time!
Common Sense is a superpower these days.
The Russians made provisions during the cold war to shelter their entire population with appropriate provisioning. The United States make fallout shelters in various basements that could hold a fraction of our citizens. The provisioning has not been maintained. The US also build very sophisticated underground bunkers with long-term provisioning; but, those are only for government people.
I leanred it this way: Proper preperation prevents piss poor performance.
NATO’s been training for a nuclear war with Russia since Russia got the bomb. It’s always been on the possibility list, and that’s what you train for.
I’m for peace, I never wanted war with Russia (unlike many here seem to). However NATO would be negligent if they were not training for a scenario where a nuke was detonated under current conditions. I don’t read too much into that other than ‘be ready just in case’. Just like we always did in the cold war.
I like that better. Seems more proactive.
Same old, same old.
By the way, peace is real easy: Russia GTFO of Ukraine.
I think Cleopatra did the latter...
Even if it kills us, eh rrrod?
“NATO Is Training for A Nuclear War with Russia Right Now”
shouldn’t we be training with our allies instead of with russia?
She was a asp kisser before it was cool.
You at least have to act like you take the threat seriously.
Putin will see that NATO does. He then has to wonder if his weapons will even work, given the state of much of the rest of his military.
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