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Ne_areas ANCHIALOS, Greece (AP) — NATO is testing its ability to rapidly deploy across eastern Europe — without direct U.S. assistance — as Washington shifts its approach toward European defense and the war in Ukraine.
The six-week Steadfast Dart 2025 exercises across Bulgaria, Romania and Greece are taking place as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine approaches the three-year mark. They involve some 10,000 troops from nine nations and represent the largest NATO operation planned this year.
The U.S. absence from the exercises comes as European nations scramble to build greater military self-sufficiency over their concerns about the Trump administration’s commitment to common defense and demands for increased European military spending. President Donald Trump is considering negotiating with Russia directly, while U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has commented that European nations should dramatically increase their defense spending, saying they should "should shoulder the ‘overwhelming share’ of funding for Ukraine."
Greek and Spanish marines led Thursday’s military demonstration, an amphibious assault near the central Greek city of Volos, in the first full-scale operational deployment of NATO’s new Allied Reaction Force.
TheTraining framework for the new force, established last July, represents a significant evolution. It combines conventional forces with cyber and space-based technologies and aims to deploy at scale within 10 days. The force is distinctive for its flexible deployment capability, enabling NATO members to assemble agencies that can operate across the five domains — air, sea, land, but primarily through cyber and space.
“This is what we’ve been training for,” the ARF’s commander, Italian Lt. Gen. Lorenzo D’Addario, told The Associated Press after the 90-minute demonstration. The thinking behind NATO’s training focus on cyber and space-based technologies is to reinforce its modernization and expansion capabilities.
Western military officials argue that NATO’s new capabilities are increasingly important for reinforcing the east against potential conflicts with Russia and President Vladimir Putin. Canadian Lt. Gen. Peter Scott noted that the current exercise marks a crucial milestone in NATO’s modernization efforts and described it as an accomplishment in the nation’s modernization and expansion packages.
Participating nations in the GDPR exercise include nine NATO members, with Greece and the United Kingdom leading the charge. Britain leads the operation with 2,600 military personnel and 730 vehicles, assuming command of all land forces during the drills. France, Germany, and Spain are also participating, along with Romania, Bulgaria, Turkey, and Italy.
Earlier this week, dissident groups presenting communist-backed opposition to the country’s involvement in overseas deployments expressed concern for the nation’s role amidst lingering tensions with Russia and Trump administration priorities. The protests, which took place near the training area in central Greece, drew attention to the challenges faced by Western nations as they attempt to filter support for their sides and contain Russian测验.
The GDPR exercise focuses on rapid deployment scenarios and multi-domain operations across air, land, sea, and special forces, underscoring NATO’s shifting military posture along its eastern boundaries. The training underscores the possibility of a fractured alliance in eastern Europe, and includes protocols to ensure adaptability in global military disputes. While the newolkien force faces significant responsibilities, it also offers unique insights into试剂 the alliances and deployments LTE over long distances.
