As of: February 3, 2024, 4:46 a.m
By: Patrick Mayer
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Press
Split
Russia is reacting again to the major NATO exercise “Steadfast Defender”.
This time Moscow is making serious accusations against Germany, Poland and the Netherlands.
Suwalki – It was not surprising that Russia would react to the major NATO exercise “Steadfast Defender”.
This time Moscow made harsh accusations against Germany, Poland and the Netherlands.
NATO maneuvers: allegations from Russia against Germany and Poland
With alleged knowledge of what the transatlantic defense alliance is planning to do in its massive exercise with 90,000 soldiers in the Baltics in the context of the Ukraine war.
Kremlin autocrat Vladimir Putin did not come forward, nor did his friendly Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.
This time, Konstantin Gavrilov, the head of the Russian delegation to the negotiations in Vienna on military security and arms control within the framework of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), railed against the West.
Gavrilov specifically accused NATO of looking for a pretext to establish a permanent military corridor at the strategically sensitive Suwalki Gap on the border between Poland and Lithuania.
A Bundeswehr combat unit is already stationed in Lithuania as part of the enhanced Forward Presence Lithuania.
© IMAGO / Funke Photo Services
Between Kaliningrad and Belarus: Suwalki Gap on the Polish-Lithuanian border
“These NATO exercises bring together 90,000 soldiers, officers and equipment.
The transfer of equipment takes place in the east direction, that is, it simulates the so-called defense of the Suwalki Corridor.
We call this a completely obvious provocation,” Gavrilov said, according to state news agency
Tass.
The diplomat claimed in the neutral Austrian capital: “Strengthening the alliance is not for defense, but actually to test the possibilities for possible provocations against the Russian Federation.” The Suwalki Corridor extends near the small Polish town of Suwalken 104 kilometers long between the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad and Belarus, which is allied with the Kremlin.
Kaliningrad
Kaliningrad was formerly called Königsberg and was the capital of the Prussian province of East Prussia until the end of the Second World War in May 1945. When it was conquered by the “Red Army”, the port city on the Baltic Sea fell from what was then Nazi Germany to the Soviet Union. In 1946 the city was renamed Kaliningrad. After the collapse of the USSR in 1991, the region remained as an exclave with Russia. Today, 430,000 people live in the city itself and around a million people in the oblast of the same name.
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Suwalki Corridor: NATO's Achilles heel between Poland and the Baltics
The narrow section of land is considered NATO's Achilles heel in the event of a military confrontation with Russia.
The fear: The Baltics could be cut off by land routes.
“They want to significantly accelerate the transfer of forces and equipment to Poland and the Baltic states,” said Gavrilov, according to
Tass
: “How should we assess that?
Is that protection?
In my opinion, this is not protection.” Gavrilov pointed out in Vienna that Moscow viewed the statements by Germany, the Netherlands and Poland about the creation of a military corridor as provocative measures, the report dated February 1 continued.
However, neither Berlin nor Warsaw nor Amsterdam had made a corresponding statement.
Whether this is the Kremlin's attempt to find out which NATO units are training with each other and in what combination is speculation.
What is known, however, is that Poland has a significant interest in securing the Suwalki Corridor, which is only 255 kilometers as the crow flies from the capital Warsaw.
And: Germany and the Netherlands have been working closely together in the Baltics since 2017 through the NATO Battlegroup Lithuania.
Located between NATO states on the Baltic Sea: the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad.
© dpa/Graphic: A. Brühl, Editor: J. Schneider
NATO maneuvers in Poland and Lithuania: Bundeswehr sends 10th Panzer Division
Furthermore, the Dutch army and the German land forces use the identical main weapon systems with the Leopard 2 main battle tank, the self-propelled howitzer 2000 and the GTK Boxer, which makes coordination on the fictional battlefield easier.
The German-led parts of the large-scale maneuver are summarized under the sub-exercise “Quadriga 2024”.
“In addition to rapid deployment, the focus is on multinational combat exercises in Poland and Lithuania, among others.
For the final exercise Grand Quadriga, from mid-May 2024, the 10th Panzer Division will be relocated from various locations in Germany by ship, rail and road to Lithuania in order to practice defense and counterattack on alliance territory together with the alliance partners,” writes the Bundeswehr on their website, which has a total of 13,000 soldiers.
Major NATO maneuvers to deter Russia: Norway is considered a weak point
In another scenario, Great Britain, Norway, Finland and accession candidate Sweden will probably rehearse the defense of the northeastern Norwegian border with Russia as NATO's weak point.
The role of the USA and the French is currently unclear.
(pm)