NATO to launch its largest military exercise since the Cold War

NATO announced Thursday that it would begin the Steadfast Defender 2024 drills, a series of expansive military exercises scheduled to run through May. The drills will involve around 90,000 troops. Sweden, which hopes to join the alliance shortly, will participate with NATO’s 31 member states. Steadfast Defender 2024 will also involve dozens of ships, over a thousand combat vehicles including tanks, and 80 fighter jets, helicopters, and drones.

What’s the purpose of the exercise? “This is about preparedness,” said NATO Military Committee Chairman Admiral Rob Bauer. NATO Commander and U.S. Army Gen. Chris Cavoli said the alliance will “demonstrate its ability to reinforce the Euro-Atlantic area” by moving forces across the Atlantic Ocean from North America. The reinforcement is part of a simulated “emerging conflict scenario against a near-peer adversary,” he said. NATO’s joint press conference Thursday included a description of the war between Russia and Ukraine.

Dig deeper: Read R. Albert Mohler Jr.’s column in WORLD Opinions about the new axis of evil.