Arctic Challenge 2023: NATO’s Maneuvers in Confronting Russia

Mahmoud Al-Batakoushi

Countries in the European continent continue to play a game of cat and mouse with Russia, aiming to tighten the noose around it and isolate it. The largest evidence of this is the military maneuvers conducted by the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) in the Arctic, named “Arctic Challenge 2023.” The exercises took place for two weeks, starting on May 29.

Arctic Challenge 2023

Arctic Challenge 2023 involves the participation of 150 fighter aircraft from NATO member countries, including the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Norway, Sweden, and Finland. The aircraft take off from the Finnish base of Pirkkala-Tampere, just days after Russian President Vladimir Putin announced the transfer of tactical nuclear weapons from Moscow to Minsk.

Dr. Basil Al-Haj Jassem, a researcher in Russian affairs, affirms that these military maneuvers reflect Western concerns about Russian threats to resort to the nuclear option in response to NATO’s arming and assistance to Ukraine in its war against Moscow. This has disrupted Russian calculations and prolonged the ongoing war since February 24, 2022. He points out that Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko’s recent announcement about the direct transfer of tactical nuclear weapons from Russia to Belarus was a blow to Western countries that believed Russian President Vladimir Putin’s statements since February 2022 about resorting to the nuclear option in the war against Ukraine and the Western countries behind it were mere empty threats. The use of nuclear weapons poses a threat to the entire world.

Al-Haj further adds that the Arctic Challenge 2023 maneuvers serve as a strong message from Western countries to Moscow, indicating that the threat is close to their national security at any time and within reach of their borders. The maneuvers involve the participation of three thousand fighters, a significant number in the equations of combat and training maneuvers. The exercises take place in Finnish cities of Rovaniemi and Pirkkala, Swedish city of Luleå, and Norwegian city of Elan. The training includes daily sorties primarily in the northern parts of Finland, Norway, and Sweden, with the participation of the Moldovan army. This further reinforces the military containment of Russia through Western military activities and troubling military exercises, causing increased concern and fears for Moscow, especially as it utilizes the Ox reconnaissance system, which is part of the air defense and control system. It appears as a global air squadron and a military gathering encircling the Russian bear’s skies.

The Largest in Organization

Al-Haj points out that these maneuvers represent the practical implementation of Finland’s accession to NATO. The Finnish Air Force assumes leadership in the planning and command of training activities in the Arctic, striking a severe blow to Russian threats. He further emphasizes that Arctic Challenge 2023 involves 14 countries, including 12 NATO members, in addition to Sweden, which seeks to join the alliance, and Switzerland. This makes it the largest organization in recent years and a response to Russian decisions and movements regarding the joint and mutual transfer of tactical nuclear weapons to Belarus between Moscow and Minsk.

The Russian affairs researcher also highlights that the Arctic maneuvers confirm the concerns of Western countries about Russia’s advancements in military operations in Ukraine, especially in places like Bahmut and other important axes. Despite the significant support provided by NATO countries to Kiev to halt the Russian advance and break Moscow’s combative image, the West supplies Ukraine with long-range ammunition capable of threatening Russian territories up to 300 kilometers deep. Consequently, the maneuvers take place within the framework of mutual action and reaction between Russia and Western powers. The West supplies Ukraine with long-range weapons, and Moscow responded by moving part of its nuclear arsenal to the heart of Belarus, prompting Washington and its allies to conduct air maneuvers with state-of-the-art fighter jets in close proximity to Moscow’s influence in the Arctic.

Dr. Basil Al-Haj Jassem emphasized that these maneuvers are a display of Western air power in confronting Russia’s decision to transfer tactical nuclear weapons to Belarus. It represents a military mobilization and an aerial show of force using the latest fighter jets owned by Western arsenals, aimed at countering the Russian bear’s borders. It is a Western attempt to encircle Russia in the northern regions while it is preoccupied with combat operations in Ukraine.