NATO exercise
Reservists rehearse an emergency in the Rostock harbor
For a week and a half, Bundeswehr reservists trained to protect and secure critical defense infrastructure. photo
© Jens Büttner/dpa
Since Russia’s attack on Ukraine, the security situation in Europe has worsened significantly. You can tell that in the Bundeswehr in the choice of words and the increasing rhythm of the exercises.
“The performance will begin shortly,” were the stage directions. Then followed in Rostock Part one of a homeland security exercise. Heavily armed reservists from the homeland security regiments and active Bundeswehr soldiers were on duty at a checkpoint at the seaport. More than 200 invited guests watched the skills demonstration from a grandstand, including Prime Minister Manuela Schwesig (SPD).
The presentation ended the one-and-a-half-week “National Guardian” exercise, which had been running at various locations in Germany since April 22nd. “Only what is practiced can work,” explained the commander of the Territorial Command (TFK), André Bodemann, about the purpose of the operation.
One of the things that was tested in Rostock was checking vehicles at an access gate to the seaport, which plays a central role for the armed forces and NATO in an emergency as a relocation and logistics port. Heavy concrete barriers, barbed wire fencing and secured guard posts surrounded the checkpoint. For demonstration purposes, the radio messages were broadcast loudly so that guests could hear the communication. At the end of the first exercise, which lasted around 20 minutes, the soldiers received applause from the spectator stands.
Deployment of troops as a deterrent
“The concrete scenario is that there has been a large concentration of troops on NATO’s eastern flank. Russia has called for maneuvers that have the potential to actually threaten NATO territory,” said Bodemann, describing the general conditions of the maneuver. “Fortunately, we are not at war, but we have not been at peace for a long time either.”
In the exercise scenario, NATO decided to move large parts of its troops to the eastern flank via the logistics hub Germany as a deterrent. The training operation in Rostock was part of the German exercise series “Quadriga”, which in turn is part of the major NATO exercise Steadfast Defender.
For the NATO maneuver, heavy equipment, including combat vehicles, armored personnel carriers and transport vehicles, as well as trucks, were loaded onto a roll-on-roll-off ferry in Rostock and embarked for Klaipeda in Lithuania. The guests followed this second part of the exercise from the water, on board a passenger ship. A Bundeswehr rescue helicopter also rattled low over the water and terrain, on the Warnow, which flows into the Baltic Sea, naval speedboats pushed away attackers in a rubber dinghy, and in the countryside the Bundeswehr demonstrated how it catches a suspect, including the use of dogs, and hands them over to the police. Even afterwards there was applause from the audience from the ship.
Even if the demonstration under blue skies, sun and 26 degrees reminded some observers of a promotional event, the exercise had a current relevance due to the changed geopolitical situation since Russia’s attack on Ukraine. Russian President Vladimir Putin is threatening the peace order, said Federal Council President Schwesig. “We have to be prepared for an emergency.” The motto applies: “We hope for the best, but prepare for the worst.”
Reservists are an integral part of the defense strategy
The Bundeswehr’s homeland security forces belong to the reserve and are, so to speak, part-time soldiers, as the Bundeswehr’s deputy inspector general, Andreas Hoppe, put it. The Bundeswehr’s mission is more relevant than ever. “We are well advised to prepare our Bundeswehr so that it is able to strike and defeat a military opponent on the battlefield. The choice of words alone shows that we are now in a different world,” said Hoppe . It doesn’t work without a reserve.
One assumption in the exercise scenario was that larger parts of the Bundeswehr would no longer be in Germany in the event of a defense, but would have to fight at the front. Reservists and the new homeland security regiments will then take on military protection tasks in Germany – and will be supported by the police authorities and other institutions. The Operational Plan for Germany (OPLAN) was also drawn up for this purpose.
There were protests on the sidelines of the event. Some demonstrators criticized this plan and warned of increasing militarization.