Hundreds of British Army vehicles are heading to Poland as Nato forces carry out their biggest operation since the Cold War in preparation for a possible conflict with Russia.
In total, around 600 trucks were packed onto two large cargo ships at the Marchwood marine assembly center near Southampton, bound for Eastern Europe.
Some 1,500 soldiers will leave in the coming days for Poland as part of NATO’s Steadfast Defender exercise, forming part of a force of 90,000 alliance soldiers who will carry out exercises until May.
The “unparalleled” operation comes as it emerged that Vladimir Putin’s forces have lost more than 3,000 tanks during their illegal war in Ukraine, more than their entire pre-war inventory.
While Russia has not been explicitly named in reference to the exercises, NATO considers them the most significant direct threat to the security and peace of its members in Europe.
Hundreds of British Army vehicles are heading to Poland as Nato forces carry out their biggest operation since the Cold War.
Military vehicles are loaded onto the Anvil Point ship at the Sea Mounting Center on February 13.
Marchwood’s operations officer said daily work at the port had increased in the past two weeks.
In total, around 600 trucks were packed onto two large cargo ships at the Marchwood marine assembly center near Southampton, bound for Eastern Europe.
Work at the port has increased and staff now work 24/7 in split shifts.
Foxhound armored vehicles belonging to the 7th Light Mechanized Brigade of the British Army, are loaded by members of the Royal Logistics Corps
Footage shows armored support vehicles boarding a 23,000-tonne cargo ship as they prepared to sail to Germany before traveling to Poland for the operation.
Vehicles belonging to the 7th Light Mechanized Brigade, also known as ‘The Desert Rats’, along with Land Rovers, engineer tractors and support vehicles were loaded yesterday for their journey from Anvil Point, near Southampton.
Capt. Greg Jardine, 32, operations officer at Marchwood, said daily work at the port had intensified in the past two weeks as a result, with staff now working 24/7. the week in divided shifts.
Captain Jardine, of Darlington, said: “It is of incomparable size compared to our usual drills.”
‘It’s an escalation in the pace of our training and that comes down to exercise.
“We are not in a situation where we expect to go to war soon, but the situation in Europe has changed.”
The departure comes as HMS Prince of Wales, which is leading the military maritime mission, set sail for Norway on Monday.
The British warship will be at the center of NATO exercises involving more than 20,000 UK military personnel in Scandinavia and northern Europe.
Corporal Lauren Drabble, 29, a movement controller at Marchwood, said all vehicles had to be checked for explosives before they were allowed to board the cargo ship.
She said: “We don’t normally receive this many vehicles and this is without a doubt the biggest operation I have been involved in in my career.”
Armored vehicles board a cargo ship to sail to Germany before traveling to Poland for the operation.
Land Rovers, engineer tractors and support vehicles were pictured yesterday being loaded for their journey from Anvil Point, near Southampton.
The vehicles will take part in the multi-month Steadfast Defender 24 exercise, designed to test their defenses against Russia’s war against Ukraine.
It comes days after the German chancellor warned that Europe has to “urgently” increase “mass weapons production”.
“This is urgently needed because the painful reality is that we do not live in times of peace,” he said, pointing to Russia’s war against Ukraine, adding: “Those who want peace must be able to successfully deter aggressors.”
His comments came as the Russian threat continues to loom large for European states, which have been calling for increased defense spending while Ukraine’s efforts to push back the invaders appear to be stalled.
The diplomatic push across the continent comes after Donald Trump, who is leading the race for the Republican nomination for the 2024 election, said earlier this week that he did not believe European nations were paying enough money to NATO.
Footage shows armored support vehicles taxiing on top of a 23,000-tonne cargo ship as it prepared to sail towards Germany.
Armored vehicles belonging to the 7th Light Mechanized Brigade, also known as ‘The Desert Rats’, were among those being loaded for their journey from Anvil Point.
Military vehicles are loaded onto the Anvil Point ship at Sea Mounting Center, Feb. 13, 2024, in Marchwood.
At a campaign rally in South Carolina, the former president said Saturday that he had told the leader of a “great” European power that he would not intervene if Russia attacked an ally that was not meeting its financial obligations.
‘No, I wouldn’t protect you. In fact, I would encourage you to do whatever you want,” Trump told his supporters.
President Joe Biden, who has pledged strong support for the alliance, criticized his likely opponent’s comments in November’s presidential election as “appalling and dangerous.”
NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg issued an unusually strong rebuttal to Trump, saying that “any suggestion that allies will not defend each other undermines all of our security, including that of the United States.”
The outburst was the Republican front-runner’s most extreme, raising questions among diplomats about his commitment to the NATO collective defense umbrella that has safeguarded Europe since World War II.
The “unparalleled” operation comes as it emerged that Vladimir Putin’s forces have lost more than 3,000 tanks during their illegal war in Ukraine.
A senior NATO diplomat, speaking like others on condition of anonymity, called the comment an “attack on the soul of the alliance” for casting doubt on its Article 5 promise to protect an ally if attacked.
Moscow’s annexation of Crimea to Ukraine in 2014 already pushed European nations to increase their defense budgets.
The full-scale invasion of 2022 saw NATO turn the two percent spending commitment into a floor rather than a ceiling.