NATO Black Sea Exercise: Maneuvers, Reconnaissance And Risks
Based on its plans and strategies, NATO maintains a strong interest in the Black Sea region. Directly in the Black Sea and on the territory of the neighboring countries of the Alliance, various events are regularly held with the involvement of various forces and means - according to the official version, to practice countering the "Russian aggression". Moreover, such maneuvers are often themselves aggressive in nature and directly threaten our security.
In recent weeks
The next potentially dangerous actions of NATO, accompanied by unfriendly statements, could be observed from the end of October until the last days. New international naval exercises were held in the Black Sea with the involvement of ships and aviation several countries in the region. In addition, other activities were carried out in parallel in the surrounding areas, incl. in the order of full deployment and combat service.
In late October and early November, several US Navy pennants from the 6th fleet... These were the command ship USS Mount Whitney (LCC-20), the destroyer USS Porter (DDG-78) and the tanker USNS John Lenthall (T-AO-189). The ships made friendly visits to the ports of Turkey, Georgia and Romania, and then headed to the area of future exercises. There they were joined by the Romanian frigate Mărășești and the Turkish Yavuz.
Curiously, the recent exercise was not pre-planned. Despite this, within a few days the international ship detachment gathered and completed all the main tasks. Joint maneuvering, target search, etc. were carried out. The skills of an auxiliary character were also tested. For example, American sailors refueled the destroyer Porter from the escort tanker.
During training events, the ships of the three naval forces constantly interacted with aviation. With its help, illumination of the situation, reconnaissance of the forces of a conditional enemy, etc. It is curious that the planes and helicopters operated not only within the designated sea range. NATO aviation was also spotted in other areas, incl. far enough from the ships.
For example, on November 10, the Russian Ministry of Defense reported that on the previous day, our Aerospace Forces had detected and escorted a number of air targets. An E-8C reconnaissance and control aircraft, an RC-135 strategic reconnaissance aircraft and a P-8A patrol aircraft belonging to the US armed forces were spotted directly over the Black Sea. In addition, a French C-160G aircraft operated from one of the Romanian air bases. Outside the naval range, over the territory of Ukraine on the same day, a reconnaissance U-2 of the American Air Force was noticed and escorted.
The recovered NATO aircraft kept their distance from Russian airspace. At the same time, individual sections of their route approached our borders by 30-70 km, which is quite enough for conducting certain types of reconnaissance. In addition, NATO aircraft operated not only on November 9, but also on other days.
The exercise took several days, and the participants reportedly coped with all the tasks. On November 15 and 16, US Navy ships routinely left the Black Sea and headed for the Mediterranean to continue their voyage. Thus, the American ship detachment completed the necessary measures and did not violate the terms of the existing agreements on the length of stay in the Black Sea.
Russian reaction
The appearance of American ships in the Black Sea region did not go unnoticed by the Russian armed forces. Entry of ships into the Black Sea, all movements and actions, incl. within the framework of the exercises, they were constantly monitored by ground, ship and air assets of the Russian ground forces, the Navy and the Aerospace Forces. At the same time, no active steps were taken.
Against the background of these events, a number of important statements were made describing the current situation, its features and emerging risks. So, on October 31, when American ships entered the Black Sea, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov noted that the demonstration of the US flag in the region does not add stability to the world. However, Russia is ready for any threat and is capable of ensuring security in the region. Moreover, our country stands for cooperation, not confrontation.
On November 7, Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu spoke about the current situation. According to him, the military constantly monitors and escorts foreign ships. At the same time, there is an understanding that any provocation may follow at any moment, and this should not be allowed. Shoigu called the exercises as a whole almost constant attempts to test the Russian defense on the Black Sea coast and in the southern direction.
The next day, the Foreign Minister named the reasons for the current exercises. They are connected with the desire of the United States and NATO to increase the policy of containing Russia - in violation of all the statements of the past. On November 9, an even more interesting statement was made by the press service of the Ministry of Defense. She described the current exercise as an attempt to study a potential theater of war.
On November 11, Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov called the NATO exercise a provocation. He also recalled that Russia regularly calls on the US and NATO to take risks into account, but they continue to test our determination to defend their interests. Such assessments are given by the Ministry of Defense: on the same day, it called the current exercises aggressive actions on the part of the United States.
Clear threat
The United States and its NATO allies continue to conduct regular joint exercises in the Black Sea and in the surrounding regions - practically at the borders of Russia. At the same time, they simply ignore Russian warnings and continue to bend their line, which does not contribute to an improvement in the military-political situation both in the region and in Europe.
The recent exercise is broadly similar to the previous exercise, but it has several important features that should be noted. Some of them are perplexing, while others may well be perceived as an additional threat to our national security.
First of all, it is necessary to note the composition of the international naval squadron. It was based on only three warships - an American destroyer and frigates from Romania and Turkey. Obviously, the strike potential of such a group is very limited, although in this case there will be obvious benefits from the exercises. The battleships were escorted by a tanker, and some of them were able to work out the transfer of fuel at sea.
However, of greatest interest is the presence of the USS Mount Whitney (LCC-20) command ship, equipped with an advanced radio-technical complex. This pennant is able to independently and in interaction with other means monitor the situation in a large area, process the entire volume of incoming data and issue information to various consumers. The main task of the ship is to control the naval groupings, as well as to ensure their interaction with other branches of the armed forces.
It is necessary to pay attention to the activity of aviation. According to the Russian Ministry of Defense, NATO planes and helicopters were almost constantly present in the exercise area and in the surrounding regions. It is noteworthy that these were mainly special aviation complexes with the possibility of reconnaissance and control.
All this makes it possible to determine the approximate goals of the past unscheduled exercises. It seems that the main tasks were working out joint actions under the leadership of the American command ship, as well as conducting reconnaissance and collecting data on the Russian defense in the Black Sea region. Joint maneuvering, refueling, etc. in this case, they were secondary tasks to cover the main events.
According to intelligence ...
It is easy to see that the latest exercises of foreign navies in the Black Sea are of particular importance for NATO strategists. With their help, it was possible to clarify some issues of interaction between the fleets, and also, probably, to collect additional information on the state of Russian defense in the region. Obviously, the collected data is used in the finalization of existing plans or in the creation of new documents.
Even the very fact of the presence of ships and aircraft of a potential enemy near our borders worries the military and political leadership. An additional cause for concern is the apparent attempts to conduct reconnaissance and open defenses. As a result, Russian officials rightly point out that NATO's Black Sea exercises do not help preserve peace and are even a provocation.
How successful the data collection operation combined with the exercise was is unknown. However, it can be assumed that its results will not please NATO strategists. Aircraft and ships could again establish that a full-fledged "zone of prohibition and restriction of access and maneuver" A2 / AD has been created and is operating in the Black Sea region. And this means that any rash actions and open aggression will not remain without an extremely painful response - and therefore, even exercises in the Black Sea should be carried out with great caution.
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