NATO Tests Readiness in Major War Game

Close to 1,500 warfighters across Europe, including over 600 military and civilian experts from 27 NATO members nations at the NATO Joint Force Training Centre joined their efforts during the execution of the NATO Exercise LOYAL LEDA 2025. Between 4 and 13 March, the Headquarters Multinational Corps South-East, as the primary training audience, and also NATO Rapid Deployable Corps-Türkiye tested their readiness during an Article 5 (collective defence) Major Joint Operation exercise.

Carefully planned and prepared over the past 18 months, Exercise LOYAL LEDA 2025, was a NATO Allied Land Command-sponsored land domain tactical level exercise with NATO Joint Force Training Centre in the Officer Directing the Exercise role. Based on an actual NATO defence plan, it challenged the training audiences in a very realistic multi-domain, quickly changing environment, covering political, military, economic, social, information and infrastructure areas.

The participants faced demanding injects that included content delivered by different response cells. Challenging situations or opposing force activities, planned in all domains – land, air, maritime, space and cyber, allowed the training audiences to verify procedures, skills and reactions, to eliminate potential shortfalls, and thus to confirm their operational readiness.

“Together we have faced countless challenges that tested our skills, communication, and the Training Audience decision-making abilities under pressure,” highlighted Brigadier General Petr Svoboda, JFTC Deputy Commander, addressing Exercise Control members during the closing ceremony in Bydgoszcz, Poland. “Thanks to your efforts, we have strengthen our bonds and ensured that we are better prepared to respond to any crisis that may arise.”

The exercise was conducted under the watchful eye of Lieutenant General Jez Bennett, the Deputy Commander of the Allied Land Command, Major General Bogdan Rycerski, the NATO Joint Force Training Centre Commander and also the Exercise Director, and Lieutenant General (ret.) Leonardo di Marco, the EXCON Senior Adviser. Its success, however, would not have been possible without the commitment of personnel engaged on all levels.

Exercises like LOYAL LEDA 2025 create opportunities to share knowledge and experience in the area of NATO training and exercises. The VIP Day, organised at JFTC, was a perfect venue for such interactions. High military representatives, to include Lieutenant General Athanasios Garinis, the NATO Rapid Deployable Corps-Greece Commander, and Lieutenant General Iulian Berdila, Deputy Chief of Romanian Defence, who explored the exercise at JFTC, had a chance to deep dive into the exercise at its peak. During the second week of the exercise, General Rycerski visited the exercise troops at the Multinational Corps South-East in Sibiu, Romania, and participated in the Battle Field Circulation Event for Exercise LOYAL LEDA 2025. Such engagements are pivotal for further development of allied training and exercises.