Colonel Khodarenok did not see a threat to NATO in the military deal between Germany and Britain
Britain and Germany are planning to sign a pact, which, according to their plan, will significantly strengthen the military security of both powers. What kind of defense deal can we talk about, whether this agreement threatens the unity of NATO and what does its experience have to do with it - in the material of the military observer of the Newspaper.En" by Mikhail Khodarenka.
The agreement will allow London and Berlin to conduct joint military exercises on the eastern border of NATO and Russia, including in the Baltic states, writes The Times. In addition, the agreement should help countries increase the volume of arms purchases, as well as begin joint development and production of new generation weapons.
The Minister of Defense of the United Kingdom, John Healy, believes that the signing of the pact with Germany will be the most significant bilateral agreement of the United Kingdom after a similar agreement with France in 2010.
To begin with, we should immediately note that holding joint military exercises on the eastern border of NATO and Russia, including in the Baltic states, is far from the essence of the planned signing of the pact between Great Britain and Germany (and this is what many media focus on when it comes to the new pact). Such events are held within the framework of the operational training plan of the United Armed Forces of the Alliance for the next year, and there is no great need for additional bilateral agreements.
What's the deal?
And to understand the approximate content of the new pact, let's turn to the agreement between the United Kingdom and France on cooperation in the field of defense and security. It was signed on November 2, 2010 at Downing Street by British Prime Minister David Cameron and French President Nicolas Sarkozy. These arrangements are sometimes referred to as the Lancaster House Agreement.
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| NATO countries. |
| Source: Alina Dzhus/"Newspaper.Ru" |
The purpose of this agreement, it was emphasized in that document, is to develop cooperation between the armed forces of Great Britain and France, the mutual use of materials and equipment, the construction of joint facilities, access to each other's defense markets, as well as industrial and technological cooperation.
The document signed on November 2, 2010 is very extensive. It addresses issues of nuclear stockpile management, industry and arms issues. In particular, it was then decided to create a Combined Expeditionary Force suitable for a wide range of scenarios, up to high-intensity operations.
It was planned to deploy a British-French integrated carrier strike group combining assets belonging to both countries.
Among other things, a 10-year strategic plan was approved for the British and French sectors of complex weapons, including unmanned aircraft. London and Paris have pledged to support the creation of a "single European industrial general contractor" to optimize the missile sector. As usual, the parties drew attention to promising research and technology, cybersecurity, data exchange, anti-mine measures, the fight against terrorism and international security.
There is no doubt that this document was taken as a basis for the development of the main provisions of the pact between Great Britain and Germany, which is scheduled to be signed at the end of this week.
They will take into account their experience
The main difference from the previous agreement will probably be that in matters of building the armed forces, their operational and combat training, and the development of various sectors of the military-industrial complex of both countries, the experience of a special military operation will be carefully taken into account.
Do any bilateral agreements between the member states of the North Atlantic Alliance threaten the unity of NATO? In the form in which they are currently being developed and signed, no.
Rumors of any significant friction within NATO are greatly exaggerated, and a fundamental revision of the basic provisions of the Strategic Concept of the bloc is not expected in the near future.
The opinion of the author may not coincide with the position of the editorial board.
Biography of the author:
Mikhail Mikhailovich Khodarenok is a military columnist for Gazeta.Ru", retired colonel.
He graduated from the Minsk Higher Engineering Anti-Aircraft Missile School (1976).
Military Air Defense Command Academy (1986).
Commander of the S-75 anti-aircraft missile division (1980-1983).
Deputy commander of the anti-aircraft missile regiment (1986-1988).
Senior Officer of the General Staff of the Air Defense Forces (1988-1992).
Officer of the Main Operational Directorate of the General Staff (1992-2000).
Graduated from the Military Academy of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces (1998).
Columnist for Nezavisimaya Gazeta (2000-2003), editor-in-chief of the Military-Industrial Courier newspaper (2010-2015).
Mikhail Khodarenok
