NATO's Dynamic Master 2020 command post exercise begins in the UK on 9 November. The alliance press release states that the purpose of the maneuvers is to train personnel of the NCAGS / AWNIS global navigation systems that NATO countries use in their shipping.

This should improve the qualifications of specialists to participate in Operation Ocean Shield and other alliance maritime activities.

Note that this is the third in recent months NATO naval exercises from the Dynamic series, in which the Royal Navy of Great Britain takes part.

So, at the beginning of July, Dynamic Mongoose maneuvers took place near the Faro-Icelandic border.

The so-called Faroe-Icelandic Line is a NATO anti-submarine defense line located in the North Atlantic between Greenland, Iceland and the UK.

British military experts noted that the country's participation in the Dynamic Mongoose exercise has become one of the most significant events for the fleet in recent years - two anti-submarine frigates, the HMS Trenchant submarine and the P-8 Poseidon anti-submarine patrol aircraft were involved in them.

Ian Ballantyne, editor of Warships International Fleet Review, in turn, noted that maneuvers with the participation of Great Britain are a "signal" for Moscow.

"The UK and its NATO allies are sending a signal to Putin that for the first time in decades, the alliance is ready to deploy a substantial non-nuclear naval contingent in the Arctic to oversee the development of new Russian attack and strategic submarines," Ballantyne told Express.

In addition, the Dynamic Mariner naval exercise was held off the coast of France from September 28 to October 8.

Their task was to test the naval component of NATO's forward response forces and interact with the forces of the block.

31 surface ships, one submarine and three naval patrol aircraft took part in the maneuvers.

Underwater worry

Against the backdrop of a string of NATO naval exercises, British senior military officials are expressing concern about the increased activity of the Russian submarine fleet on its northern borders.

So, the head of the United Kingdom Navy, Admiral Tony Radakin, said in October that Russia is now more active in the Atlantic than in the past 30 years.

  • Submarine on NATO exercise Dynamic Mongoose 2020

  • © shape.nato.int

In addition, he noted that due to global warming in the Arctic zones, new routes will appear along which China can send its fleet to the Atlantic and which pass along the coast of "resurgent Russia."

The Daily Mail, citing sources in the British Navy, reported that London is concerned about the increased frequency of Russian submarine visits to the North Atlantic.

According to the source of the publication, recently Moscow has allegedly sent two or three submarines to the area instead of one.

At the same time, the latest generation of submarines of the Russian Navy can pass the Faro-Icelandic border and approach the shores of Great Britain unnoticed, the newspaper notes.

The publication also quotes Rear Admiral Chris Parry, who said that in such conditions, the UK should "significantly" invest in anti-submarine technology, since in this area London is lagging behind competitors.

“We have a difficult choice before us.

Defending Britain in any future conflict will require substantial investment in submarine countermeasures technology and skills.

We are lagging behind and we need to catch up, ”said Perry.

On the sidelines

In late October, representatives of the British Navy and the US Navy announced that they would ensure the interchangeability of aircraft carriers in maritime operations, including tracking Russian Navy submarines.

US Chief of Naval Operations Admiral Mike Gilday and British Navy Chief Tony Radakin have agreed to sign a declaration of intent that will set out the terms of cooperation in areas such as aircraft carrier operations, undersea superiority, and unmanned technology and artificial intelligence.

  • Destroyer USS Roosevelt in Dynamic Mongoose 2020

  • © shape.nato.int

It is worth noting that information about the agreement appeared after the next NATO maneuvers in the Atlantic - the Joint Warrior 2020 exercises, which were led by the UK.

During these maneuvers from the deck of the British aircraft carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth, F-35B fighters of the United States Marine Corps and the Royal Navy's naval aviation made joint sorties.

Radakin's statement, cited by the United States Naval Institute (USNI), also said that cooperation between Britain and the United States would deepen in the field of monitoring Russian submarines in the waters of the Atlantic.

Meanwhile, experts note that at present, many of the alliance's maneuvers are aimed at demonstrating the "effectiveness of NATO."

“These are more political operations than military ones, since these maneuvers are related to the American elections and the current situation.

Great Britain, as a traditional ally of the United States, is thus trying to demonstrate loyalty to a potential new American leader, as well as to enlist military support from the bloc countries, ”said Sergei Sudakov, Corresponding Member of the Academy of Military Sciences, Americanist.

The interlocutor of RT added that, despite Brexit, the UK remains one of the key players in NATO.

“Although during the Trump presidency, Great Britain ceased to be the“ poodle ”of the United States, it began to pursue a more independent policy, which, among other things, is aimed at preserving its own sovereignty, including making decisions within the alliance,” the political scientist stressed.

He believes that the United Kingdom can hardly claim the status of an important maritime power of our time, but the United States needs British aircraft carriers due to the unsatisfactory state of its own fleet.

“This is due to the fact that today the USA has six out of 11 fleets in service, the rest are idle, since the fleet was not modernized under Obama.

All this complicates the conduct of any operations, in connection with which Washington needs such allies who will "lease" their facilities.

Great Britain, which, in turn, does not want to weaken ties with the United States, although it talks a lot about sovereignty, itself offered such conditions and services to the White House, ”the expert said.

In turn, military expert Yuri Knutov, in a conversation with RT, noted that London's naval activity also speaks of a desire to reconsider its position in the modern strategic security structure.

“The UK, with the help of various kinds of exercises, is trying not only to strengthen its presence in other regions, but also to solve international problems.

Such maneuvers demonstrate that the power component in British politics is beginning to dominate.

But such tactics have never contributed to the settlement of conflicts and the solution of complex world problems, ”the expert emphasized.

From his point of view, while London continues to be on the sidelines.

“Britain is trying to" settle down "to the United States, to declare itself as a leading maritime power, but it has long lost this status.

Today the British Royal Navy is inferior to both the PRC and the Russian Navy.

The British army, in fact, fulfills the tasks that the Pentagon sets for it, and is proud to play a supporting role in US foreign policy, "Knutov concluded.