On May 13 in Latvia, the International Military Exercises of the NATO Summer Shield XVI begin, which will last up to the 25th day, according to the official website of the Latvian National Armed Forces.

About a thousand soldiers from ten countries - members of the North Atlantic Alliance: Albania, the Czech Republic, Canada, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Spain, Slovenia, Slovakia and Germany will take part in the maneuvers. During the exercises, military personnel will work out the interaction of units, improve the procedure for managing air and ground operations.

Recall Summer Shield annually held in Latvia for the past 15 years. The maneuvers are held on the largest Baltic Adazi range, located near Riga. Ground and air forces are traditionally involved in the exercises. Until 2014, these trainings were of a national nature and were designed to work out the skills of escorting convoys of military vehicles, evacuating the wounded and providing medical aid.

In 2014, NATO decided to increase its military presence in the Baltic countries, citing this step by the crisis in Ukraine. At the same time, the status of Summer Shield reached the level of international - the exercises were included in the military plan of the North Atlantic alliance and began to fulfill the task of improving military cooperation between the countries participating in the bloc.

The Summer Shield XVI maneuvers are not so much tactical as strategic display, said Sergei Sudakov, corresponding member of the Academy of Military Sciences.

“The US needs only the fact of conducting exercises in the territory of the Baltic countries - NATO allies, therefore their scale is not so important for Washington. This is a PR to escalate the situation. The emphasis is on demonstrating that the NATO machine is oriented even to the weakest countries, ”Sudakov noted.

According to him, with these teachings, the White House seeks once again to remind the Kremlin that Washington supposedly has leverage on Moscow, including the military. In addition, the United States does not turn out to be able, if necessary, to deliver a so-called "extra-nuclear strike on Russian territory."

“These exercises will contribute not only to the coordination of various NATO countries, but also to stimulate their aggressiveness towards Russia. The Baltic countries, in turn, agree on all maneuvers on their territory, since the United States is their main sponsor - the republics are in fact under the manual control of Washington, ”stated Sudakov.

According to the president of the Baltic Studies Association, Nikolai Mezhevich, The fact that Summer Shield XVI in Latvia will take place at the same time as the large-scale exercises in Estonia near the Russian borders indicates the desire of the political establishment of the Baltic and the West to aggravate the already tense situation in the region.

“NATO training already covers the two Baltic republics, which is a new stage of escalation on the part of the alliance, since previously no such events were held at the same time,” said Mezhevich in a conversation with RT.

Small war

As analysts say, Summer Shield XVI is only part of Washington’s ambitious plan to create even greater tension in the Baltic republics.

Furious Hammer exercises have recently taken place in Latvia, in which the Latvian National Armed Forces and NATO military combat teams from Great Britain, France and Denmark took part. The maneuvers lasted more than three weeks - from April 12 to May 5.

Earlier it was reported that in parallel with the Summer Shield, on May 13, the tactical exercises of the Swift Response airborne assault troops will begin with the participation of American and Latvian servicemen, which will last until July 14.

In addition, from the end of May, Efp est kg Certex maneuvers will start, which will last until the beginning of June and will involve Latvian military personnel and soldiers of the North Atlantic Alliance combat group stationed in Estonia. And from June 26 to July 9, joint exercises of the Latvian army and other NATO countries will be held Jef (M) 19 Amphibex, the purpose of which is to develop the skills of naval landing with the participation of military personnel from Sweden, Finland, Lithuania and Estonia.

As Sergei Sudakov notes, the North Atlantic Alliance is increasing the number of exercises in the Baltic countries in order to create another tension point in relations between Moscow and Washington and put as many obstacles in the way of interaction between the Baltic countries and the Russian Federation as possible.

“The Baltic region is a priority for the USA from the point of view of geopolitics. According to the Pentagon’s doctrines, conducting exercises is a “small war” that makes the enemy nervous and think about how to respond to such steps, ”said Sudakov.

However, according to the expert, in the event of a real conflict, the Pentagon will never send American soldiers to fight for the Baltic countries.

“The United States will not send its soldiers to the furnace - Washington will pick up immigrants from Ukraine, Poland and other countries for similar purposes, since the White House is well aware that in the event of a possible conflict, countries such as Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia will not be able to hold out and 24 hours, ”noted Sudakov.

  • NATO symbol in front of the headquarters of the alliance in Brussels
  • AFP
  • © John Thys

According to Nikolai Mezhevich, if the Baltic republics themselves provoke a military conflict, Washington will not protect them either.

“The fifth article of the North Atlantic Treaty is articulated, therefore it does not guarantee the Baltic countries automatic protection from the alliance,” said Mezhevich.

At the same time, through conducting numerous military exercises, the Baltic countries want to remind countries of Europe about themselves, the expert believes.

“How else can the Baltic states do this if they do not have brilliant successes in the economy and unique elements of cultural heritage? Under these conditions, militarization becomes a way of demonstrating its existence, ”the expert said.

According to him, the leadership of the Baltic republics advocates an increase in the number of military exercises on its territory in order to divert the attention of the population from problems in the economy.

“Solving economic problems is difficult, expensive — it requires competent management. It is much easier to buy ten rusty self-propelled guns abroad. Moreover, the slogan about the presence of the enemy in the image of Russia is intended to unite the inhabitants of the Baltic countries. This resource, of course, is not infinite - sooner or later the sobering will come, but it is unknown when this will happen, ”Mezhevich said.

Selections for selective selection

A week before the start of the exercises at the Adazhi training ground, two NATO soldiers from Albania died, another was injured in an explosion during a demining operation as part of the mission of the unit. The incident report is posted on the official website of the National Armed Forces of Latvia.

After the incident, the military leadership of the country stopped all training and gave the command to inspect the territory of the Adazi training ground. However, later the exercises gradually resumed, reports Sputnik Latvia.

At the same time, according to Mezhevich, miscalculations when conducting maneuvers in the Baltic States, including Summer Shield XVI, can lead to an even greater increase in tension if the projectile accidentally falls on the territory of another state.

  • Tanks of NATO countries at exercises in Latvia
  • Reuters
  • © Ints Kalnins

“Any incidents with such an organization and militarization are possible. Given the current level of politicization of the teachings, one cannot hope that these incidents will be limited to the territory of the Baltic countries. The Baltic Sea is small - a shell can easily get into another state, ”said Mezhevich.

Sergei Sudakov also does not exclude the likelihood of such incidents, however, emphasizes that Russia in any case will be able to protect themselves.

“The Russian Federation has reliable air defense systems that can prevent the penetration of shells and rockets into the country. And the lack of professionalism demonstrated by the Albanian miners only shows that the mechanism of selective selection during training in NATO is lame, ”the expert concluded.