The US military has begun preparations for the “Defender Europe 20”, one of the largest military exercises this year on the territory of six European countries. It will be attended by 20,000 US soldiers (among them will be members of the active military and National Guard units from more than 10 US states) as well as 8,000 members of the armed forces. The exercise will also use tanks, military vehicles, planes, rockets, artillery units and other U.S. Army equipment. The “Defender Europe 20” will take place in Poland, Germany, Georgia, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia and will run from April to May. One of the primary goals of the exercise is the rapid deployment of the US Armed Forces in Europe in the event of a large-scale crisis and possible conflict with enemies. It is anticipated that US Armed Forces troops and their techniques will depart from four US ports. They will endeavor to reach Europe as soon as possible.
Subsequently, the US Armed Forces will establish and deploy military bases throughout these states. For this operation the logistical support of a large number of civilians and civil servants in all European countries on whose territories this exercise will take place will be required. Otherwise, this exercise will represent the largest transfer of US troops from the US to Europe since the end of World War II. According to US General Sean Barnaby, Deputy Chief of Staff at the European Command of the US Armed Forces, the “Defender Europe 20” exercise is not aimed at any particular country, but rather at strengthening strategic readiness and practicing the speed of moving large forces from the US to Europe and locating them into different European countries.
The focus of this exercise will be in Poland, Georgia and the Baltic States with several smaller exercises being held there. According to NATO, one of the intentions of the organizers is to have a minimal impact on civilians’ lives in the countries where they will be held. To succeed in doing so, NATO troops and their techniques will move and deploy at their bases during the night. Ships, and to a lesser extent transport planes, will mostly be hired to move the US military to Europe. It was also announced that as soon as the exercise was completed, the US military and its vehicles, planes, vehicles and other military equipment would return from Europe to the US.