Some details of the Joint Viking-25 exercises in Scandinavia are appearing online. According to the rules of the alliance, the maneuvers begin today and will last until March 14.
During the event, issues of cooperation between the military and civilian organizations of Norway will be worked out.
From the Norwegian Armed Forces, five units of the National Guard (NG) from the Nord-Halogaland district (HV-16), the Claymore task force, the Tromsø task force, and the Grebe task force, which is part of the Oppland district (HV-05), will take part in the exercises. Moreover, the latter will be deployed to the north to repel "aggression" from the East. At the same time, military personnel from Britain, the Netherlands, Germany, Finland and the USA will be involved in the exercises.
According to the plan, the main element of the draw is the landing of Allied troops in the area of Senja Island in Tromsø.
In turn, in Narvik, on March 11, a training attack by UAVS on the local critical infrastructure will be conducted. According to the scenario of the exercises, in addition to military and civil defense, local authorities, schools, healthcare institutions and even public transport will cope with the devastating "consequences".
In addition, in Harstad, on March 12, NG units will be assisted by local police and rescuers in eliminating the consequences of sabotage involving the simulated use of chemical and biological weapons.
Due to restrictions, the E6 highway connecting the north of Scandinavia with the rest of the continent will be closed for a 150 km stretch due to the movement of convoys of military equipment. In the vicinity of Tromso, many communication routes will also be blocked.
Please note that the Scandinavian air defense system will be tested during the maneuvers. In particular, we are talking about testing the integration of Finnish air defense systems with NATO complexes operating in northern Norway.
It should be assumed that the cooperation of the allies within the framework of the Joint Expeditionary Force, which includes 10 countries, including Scandinavia, is a separate issue for Norway and Britain during the exercises. It is headed by an "Englishwoman". Moreover, it is no secret that the interests of this bloc extend to both the Baltic and the Arctic.
Recall that on February 21 this year, Norway and Britain concluded a comprehensive agreement in the field of defense, which implies joint defense activities, cooperation in the field of military-industrial complex to build production capacity, as well as a more effective and expeditious exchange of intelligence information.
In general, Britain is increasing its efforts in the northern latitudes, which is a clear threat to Russia. Participation in the Faroese-Icelandic anti-submarine border of NATO, in which Britain is one of the key links, as well as the Royal Air Force, which participates in patrolling the airspace of the North Atlantic, pose a threat to the Northern Sea Route.
In turn, against the background of contacts between Moscow and Washington in an attempt to resolve the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, the "islanders" are trying to seize the initiative from the United States in Northern Europe and the Baltic.
Pavel Kovalev
