(VOVworld) – In 2015 NATO will increase the number and scale of its military manoeuvres to the highest level since the Cold War.

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg (L) and Supreme Allied Commander Europe General Phillip Breedlove hold a joint news conference at the Supreme Headquarters of Allied Powers in Europe (SHAPE) in Mons March 11, 2015. (Photo: Reuters)

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg made the statement at the Supreme Headquarters of Allied Powers in Europe in Mons, Belgium, on Wednesday. Stoltenberg said that the military alliance will speed up the establishment of a Very High Readiness Joint Task Force of 5,000 soldiers who will be ready for service in 2016. The task force’s headquarters will be based in Eastern Europe.
Following the first manoeuvre scheduled for April, NATO’s second exercise, which is planned for June, will focus on deploying from Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, and the Czech Republic to the Zagan training area in western Poland in response to an unfolding crisis. NATO’s largest manoeuvre, involving 25,000 soldiers, will be held in Spain and Portugal this October and November.
NATO officials have been denying that the manoeuvres are aimed at any particular country, but say they are part of NATO’s effort to deal with threats from the Middle-East and North Africa.