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00:05On the ground! Oi! On the ground!
00:11Guys, Donald, they're sliding through. Yeah, roger.
00:14There's a bank here.
00:18Yeah!
00:30We appear ever closer to a full-scale war with Russia.
00:36But are our forces battle-ready?
00:43With Russia testing NATO's resolve all along its eastern borders,
00:48we have exclusive access to the war games testing our defences against a Russian attack.
00:56In AF 7.123!
00:59Tonight, NATO soldiers are challenged to race across Europe to support the front line.
01:06Right, so obviously the plan is to leave in the 0600.
01:09No time to leave!
01:11Get the gun up here!
01:13And we're on Estonia's vulnerable border with Russia
01:16as soldiers showcase their military might to deter Putin.
01:21Contact!
01:23It's been tough. It's certainly been a real test of character.
01:27A lot of the borders with Russia are vulnerable and that's why we test it.
01:32We're with the British cooks feeding the front line soldiers.
01:36We've met about 1,500 people within this week, so the hours do rack up.
01:41Like, the other night I did 25 hours straight.
01:45And we're in the skies right on Russia's border with the pilots keeping watch.
01:51The fighters that are being controlled right now,
01:54we can see beyond what the fighters can see with their radar.
02:00Fire!
02:00Fire!
02:03As forces across Europe
02:07mobilize their troops,
02:11we are behind the scenes on land, at sea, and in the air,
02:17with the men and women training to be our first line of defense,
02:24protecting our borders
02:29and stopping Putin
02:33from expanding his war in Europe.
02:54This is the very edge of Europe.
02:59Sharing over 180 miles of border with Russia,
03:04Estonia is where Western military chiefs believe Vladimir Putin could attack next if he succeeds
03:11in Ukraine.
03:14So right now we are approximately 10 metres from Russian territory.
03:23Staring directly at the Russian threat, border guards like Peter Moran are the West's eyes
03:29and ears.
03:30They are the first line of defence.
03:39So as you can see, there is the Estonian border marker, the Russian border marker and border
03:47line is between those two border markers.
03:53The situation has become quite a lot more tense and we are, you know, fully expecting that
04:00something will happen.
04:03Maybe a military invasion from Russia.
04:08Before dawn this morning, President Putin unleashed a full-scale invasion.
04:12Not since the end of the Second World War has Europe seen a darker day.
04:17That was February 2022.
04:21The moment Russia stormed through Ukrainian border posts.
04:25Now countries bordering Russia fear history is about to repeat itself.
04:32A fear exacerbated recently by Russian fighter jets brazenly violating Estonian airspace.
04:40This is where it's feared things could suddenly explode.
04:45And right on cue, a Russian border guard appears, reminding Peter just how close danger lies.
05:01Peter and all the defence forces here know that they won't be able to hold off a Russian invasion alone.
05:07But fortunately for Estonia, they are not alone.
05:15Unlike Ukraine, Estonia has been a member of NATO, the world's largest military alliance since 2004.
05:24When Russian forces seized Crimea in 2014, NATO stationed soldiers from across the world here.
05:34We saw what transpired in Ukraine.
05:37And we need to be prepared for further incursions or further moves from Russia into other NATO territory.
05:46Putin wants to achieve his aims.
05:49He wants to get the territory that he believes is rightly his.
05:53And we need to be prepared for that.
05:55We are surging our presence in all of those bordering countries with Russia.
06:01Russia.
06:01This threat is very real.
06:03And we have to take it seriously moving forward.
06:11NATO calls their permanent deployment here enhanced forward presence battle groups, supporting
06:18all of Estonia's land, air and sea defences.
06:24NATO forces.
06:24Since 2017, the NATO battle group here in Estonia has been led by Britain, which has around 1,300
06:32soldiers permanently based here.
06:37The deputy supreme commander of all NATO forces in Europe, at the time when these forward land
06:42forces battle groups were created were created was General Richard Sherev.
06:50The enhanced forward battle groups, they were put there as a sort of tripwire force.
06:54From any objective military judgment, Russia is not going to be deterred by 1,000 allied soldiers
07:02from a military perspective.
07:03NATO.
07:04They might pause from a political perspective because Putin would know that if he attacked
07:10Estonia, he's at war with NATO.
07:21NATO's Estonian base sits just 90 miles from the border with Russia.
07:27NATO.
07:33NATO.
07:36NATO.
07:39NATO.
07:41NATO.
07:42NATO.
07:49NATO.
07:51NATO.
07:53NATO.
07:54NATO.
07:54NATO.
07:55Polish, Estonian, American, and French colleagues.
08:03In the event of a Russian invasion,
08:06these infantry soldiers know that fighting will take place
08:09in networks of trenches just like this.
08:20Today, British, French, and Estonian soldiers
08:25are nearing the end of a seven-day exercise
08:28deep in the forests of northern Estonia,
08:32practising how to storm and clear trench corridors metre by metre.
08:38What we are seeing today in the modern battlefield
08:42is that the trenches have not disappeared anywhere.
08:46They're still there, they're still valid.
08:48If you want to protect yourself, you kind of have to dig in.
08:52A platoon company of around 30 soldiers
08:55methodically make their way through one of the trench networks
08:58that could soon litter this entire border area,
09:02just as they've scarred the front line in Ukraine.
09:10It looks like something from the First World War.
09:14But trench combat is a massive part of the conflict in Ukraine.
09:22The Donbass region alone has over 250 miles of front line,
09:28marked by fortified trenches.
09:32It's a brutal, oppressive, and protractive form of combat.
09:39But it's something these NATO troops must be prepared for.
09:46This is about getting your infantry with the bayonet in to kill the enemy
09:50in exactly the same way the Romans did.
09:53It's as brutal as that.
09:55It's still a war in which men have to fight brutally face to face.
10:00This is total war, a war of absolute, utmost brutality.
10:06Warfare on a scale not seen in Europe since 1945.
10:11We're out here understanding the ground,
10:14understanding how the conditions are in these Baltic states,
10:17if anything wants to happen.
10:19Not just understanding surviving in these conditions.
10:22If something did happen, we are ready
10:24and the conditions are set for us to go.
10:28Despite the British-led presence here,
10:30in reality, NATO simply does not have enough troops stationed in Estonia
10:36to hold off Russia.
10:40Major military reinforcements from across the alliance
10:43are going to need to arrive fast
10:45if Russian President Vladimir Putin were to launch another invasion.
10:50I would imagine it might be at least a couple of weeks
10:54before any external forces that got up into Estonia,
10:59depending on the amount of warning we had.
11:03If you're in Estonia,
11:05you could be two weeks without any additional reinforcements.
11:10And this is why, throughout 2025,
11:14NATO has been testing its brand-new Allied Reaction Force,
11:18a rapidly deployable major land army,
11:21able to respond to crises within days anywhere in Europe
11:24and show Moscow that aggression against any member state
11:28will meet an immediate, heavy response.
11:37Coming up...
11:38Starting up!
11:40We're with the British army mechanics,
11:42keeping NATO's new Allied Reaction Force on the move.
11:47Come on, sir. It's your time to shine.
11:51And...
11:51This is Estonian warship, Papa 6732.
11:55A major escalation in tensions between NATO and Russia on the Baltic Sea.
12:00Alter your force to 1-0-5 immediately.
12:05Over.
12:14In the shadow of Mount Vesuvius in southern Italy
12:18sits one of the world's top military sites.
12:22It's the NATO headquarters for Allied operations.
12:26The epicentre of the West's defence
12:29against all military threats to Europe.
12:37Welcome to Joint Force Command, Naples.
12:47So this is the slightly longer way to work,
12:50but it's like a right turn, right turn, right turn.
12:54Now we're going to make the next step to the operational command
12:56where we're going to go into Joint Force Command, Naples,
12:59which is the operational command for NATO South.
13:04Great opportunity to look into the headquarters
13:06and see what it actually looks like from the inside.
13:10Meet Commander Carl Harwood.
13:1336 years in the Navy,
13:15he plays a key role in NATO's military deterrence across Europe,
13:20heading the media ops team.
13:23The headquarters is about 950 people
13:28from about 25 of the 32 NATO nations.
13:32And of the 950, around about 100 Brits.
13:38To enter this building
13:39requires high-level security clearance.
13:43Cameras are rarely allowed inside.
13:49Since the war in Ukraine,
13:51headquarters like this one
13:53have overseen a significant increase
13:56in the number and scale
13:57of military exercises NATO runs
14:00in regions right up against the Alliance's border
14:03with Russia.
14:06So this floor is logistics.
14:09So we talk about that big machine
14:10that move people,
14:12machines,
14:14armour,
14:14ammunition,
14:15food.
14:16So they sustain
14:17and maintain
14:18that fleet of personnel,
14:21that fleet of vehicles
14:22in order to support those operations.
14:24At the heart of JFC Naples
14:27are the ops centres.
14:29Highly secure command hubs
14:31manned 24-7.
14:34The largest military exercise of this year,
14:37called Steadfast Dart,
14:39is being run from inside these safe bunkers.
14:42So this is where we talk about crisis management,
14:45the Sedana Room.
14:48So the showcase exercise
14:50is exercise Steadfast Dart.
14:52So it's the biggest exercise
14:53for the NATO Alliance
14:55for 2025.
14:59Steadfast Dart
15:00is an exercise designed to test
15:02just how fast an army of thousands of reinforcements
15:05can get across Europe
15:06to support frontline soldiers
15:08on NATO's eastern borders.
15:1110,000 troops,
15:131,500 fighting vehicles,
15:162,000 miles to cover.
15:18A land and sea force
15:20big enough to send
15:20a strong deterrence message
15:22to Putin.
15:24This is not for fun.
15:26It's a race against time.
15:28Every minute crucial
15:30to defending Europe.
15:34We had the British contingent
15:37headed up by the Yorks,
15:38so they're based in York,
15:40transiting across to the ports,
15:43across to Netherlands,
15:44through Germany,
15:44at the same time
15:45with vehicles loaded down
15:46at Marchwood,
15:47and we had the strategic
15:49roll-on, roll-off ferries
15:50going around,
15:52transiting through the Mediterranean
15:53into Greece,
15:54where they're offloaded.
16:02The starting gun
16:03for Steadfast Dart
16:04has been fired.
16:07First stop
16:08is this Greek port.
16:10The British Army
16:12is arriving from Southampton
16:13to face the challenge
16:15of offloading hundreds
16:16of fighting vehicles
16:17at speed.
16:18Something they'll have to do
16:20for real
16:20if Putin attacks
16:21a NATO country.
16:27Boss,
16:28I want to say tap.
16:29Is there anything
16:30out there already?
16:31Yeah.
16:33My name is Sergeant Paul Heap.
16:37At the moment,
16:37we have 256 vehicles
16:39and different variants
16:40of vehicles,
16:41plus three containers
16:43that is coming off.
16:47My role is to ensure
16:48that the kit that's coming off
16:50or the cargo
16:50gets off safely enough
16:52and without any damage
16:54or anything at all.
16:56I've gone now
16:5734 years.
17:00It will be military.
17:01Yes, I start serving
17:02the Queen,
17:03Her Majesty,
17:04and from then,
17:05so I've been
17:06doing military service
17:07since then.
17:09These British Army vehicles
17:11are rolling off the ship
17:12as part of the first ever
17:14deployment of NATO's
17:15new Allied Reaction Force.
17:20Steadfast DART
17:21is challenging
17:22this new high readiness force
17:23to deploy to the eastern
17:25fronts of Europe
17:26in support of countries
17:27bordering Russia
17:28within 10 days
17:30or fewer.
17:33in command of these land forces
17:35for this first major trial
17:37are the British.
17:41The Allied Reaction Force
17:42is designed to respond
17:43to crisis on behalf of NATO.
17:46We've sent hundreds
17:48of vehicles and troops
17:49all the way across Europe,
17:502,000 miles,
17:52driving from Germany
17:52into Romania.
17:54We've sent thousands
17:55of troops in by air,
17:57hundreds of vehicles
17:58by ship
17:58into both Germany
17:59and here in Greece
18:00are really demonstrating
18:02our capability
18:02to go exactly
18:04where NATO needs us
18:05at very short notice.
18:09With the kit
18:10finally off the ship,
18:11it's time for the vehicles
18:13to get a proper once-over.
18:15Waiting in the wings,
18:17the Royal Electrical
18:18and Mechanical Engineers.
18:21Their job,
18:22check over
18:23every engine
18:24in a matter of hours
18:25as they would have to do
18:27in a real war.
18:30Morning, Corporal Casper.
18:33Meet Craftsman Peters.
18:35She's an Army vehicle mechanic.
18:37It's her first deployment
18:38and her job
18:40is to make sure
18:41all these vehicles
18:42are battle-ready.
18:45The team's got just 24 hours
18:47to inspect all 256 warfighter machines
18:50that rolled off the ship.
18:52It's a race against the clock.
18:54Can they pull it off?
18:58The guys have been doing
18:59their first parade
19:00on the vehicles
19:00to make sure
19:01that everything is good
19:02and the vehicles
19:02are prepped
19:03and ready for the road.
19:05There have been
19:06a few issues
19:07with the trucks
19:08where the trans oil
19:09has been overflow
19:10and we've been draining
19:11that oil
19:12and making sure
19:13that it's
19:14at the correct level.
19:15Starting up!
19:21Craftsman Peters' job
19:22is a vital part
19:23of a warfighting Army.
19:28So if there's not
19:29enough air pressure
19:30which is her
19:32then you'll hear
19:33a beeping sound.
19:38She's checking
19:39these heavy transporters
19:41as well as
19:42the lightweight
19:43protected foxhound
19:45and more heavily armoured
19:46Mastiff patrol vehicles.
19:50Leave it running!
19:51Come here!
19:53Switch!
19:56And she needs
19:57to fix any faults fast
19:58here on the side
19:59of the port
20:00without having
20:01a garage full
20:02of high-tech equipment
20:03at her disposal.
20:07Being a vehicle mechanic
20:08it's hard work
20:10and
20:12a lot of dedication
20:13towards it
20:13because
20:15we all ask
20:16like
20:16the vehicles
20:17basically
20:18it's a non-tasked worry.
20:25We're looking
20:26to see the level
20:27of the trans oil
20:28at the moment
20:29to make sure
20:30it's not overflow
20:30so once
20:32he revved up
20:33the engine a bit
20:33he get it warm
20:34all the circulation
20:35of the oil
20:36will go through
20:36and then we'll
20:37check the level
20:38of the oil
20:39to make sure
20:39it's not overflow.
20:44Oh, Peter's!
20:45Yeah?
20:45Grab the master switch
20:46put it in fact
20:47it's done.
20:48I think it's on.
20:49Yeah, it's on.
20:51Winton!
20:52Do you need to go up?
20:52Come on, son.
20:54It's your time, Mishan!
20:57So we probably
20:57might need a breaker bar.
20:59Got it!
20:59Got it!
21:00Got it.
21:01Ah!
21:02I wouldn't say
21:03I think
21:04I would have
21:05ended up
21:05as an army mechanic
21:06but I always
21:07wanted a job
21:08where I can wear
21:09a uniform.
21:1117 years ago
21:13I was probably
21:14running around
21:15thinking that
21:16I'm going to be
21:17accounting in some
21:18bank
21:18and walking
21:20in heels
21:21and all that bits
21:22but it never
21:24happened.
21:25Right, well,
21:25go and start her up.
21:26Do the gearbox
21:27check again.
21:28Starting up!
21:32My stepfather
21:33is a vehicle mechanic
21:34my dad is also
21:35a vehicle mechanic
21:37my dad
21:37he hasn't
21:38trust me since
21:39he doesn't believe
21:40I'm actually
21:41a vehicle mechanic
21:41to be fair.
21:43Just let him know
21:44what he's got
21:45and then potentially
21:46just stick that
21:46two litres
21:47straight into
21:47Saudi's truck.
21:50It's the basics
21:51of what we do
21:53in the army
21:53there's some of
21:54those vehicle checks
21:55the things that
21:55we would be doing
21:56wherever we are
21:57in whatever part
21:58of the world
21:58we need to make
21:59sure that our
22:00capability is
22:01ready for whatever
22:02eventuality we could
22:03be rolling into.
22:04The war in Ukraine
22:05has demonstrated
22:06the criticality of
22:08logistics and
22:09sustainment of the
22:10force.
22:13Testing how fast
22:15troops and firepower
22:16can reach the front
22:17line to reinforce
22:18national defences
22:19is what exercise
22:21steadfast dart
22:22is all about.
22:24It's not just
22:25training.
22:26It's preparing
22:27for war.
22:28They are going
22:30to need
22:30reinforcement
22:31really quickly
22:32and it's a simple
22:34equation.
22:35The readier you are
22:36the less time
22:37they're going to
22:38have to hold on.
22:40The less ready
22:41that thin line
22:42is going to crack
22:43pretty quickly.
22:47Coming up
22:50we go inside the
22:51cockpit of NATO's
22:52state-of-the-art
22:53intelligence-gathering
22:54aircraft.
22:56NATO's, you're a six.
22:57Good for takeoff on it.
22:59Great.
22:59We can clear
23:00four takeoff.
23:01Perfect.
23:04And can a makeshift
23:06kitchen in a freezing
23:07tent feed 400
23:09famished fighters?
23:11My oven is literally
23:12just a metal box
23:13with a door on it.
23:14So yeah, literally
23:15400 out of that.
23:16It's hard going.
23:17It's not.
23:27We're on the road
23:28with the British Army.
23:31Right, so obviously
23:32the plan is to leave
23:33in the 06-100.
23:36Hauling troops
23:37and tons of warfighting
23:38kicked thousands
23:39of miles across Europe.
23:44It's certainly
23:44the largest deployment
23:45in a NATO context
23:47and certainly from
23:47the British Army
23:48in the last 20 years
23:49with over 1,500 vehicles
23:52deploying from the UK
23:53and over 10,000 personnel.
23:57This is NATO's
23:58biggest war game
23:59of 2025.
24:02Exercise,
24:03steadfast dart.
24:05The mission,
24:06to test
24:07if this was a real war,
24:09how quickly
24:10NATO's new
24:11Allied reaction force
24:12can reach and support
24:14frontline troops
24:14in the event
24:15of a Russian attack.
24:18Steadfast dart
24:19is a very important
24:20proof of concept
24:21for that deployment
24:22of troops and equipment
24:23to the eastern flank.
24:26A 2,000-mile journey
24:28to the eastern borders
24:29of Europe
24:30requires a series
24:31of pit stops
24:32to rest and refuel.
24:35Today,
24:36the British are arriving
24:37at their final transit camp,
24:39still 100 miles
24:40from their destination.
24:49This is Camp Constanta,
24:52a former Soviet Red Army barracks.
24:56Over 1,000 British soldiers
24:58have passed through
24:58this camp in the last week.
25:00They eat,
25:01sleep
25:02and move on
25:03in a matter of hours.
25:07I don't care
25:07if your friends
25:08are in other rooms,
25:08OK,
25:08you're just going to go
25:09into them two rooms
25:10because the building's
25:10nearly clean to hand over tomorrow.
25:12Scoth tonight
25:12is a meat feast
25:13with, like, chips,
25:15burgers,
25:15there's loads of stuff going on.
25:17Turn round,
25:17follow me,
25:18we'll go that way,
25:18we'll go to the accommodation.
25:24Meet Sergeant Hayes,
25:26in charge of Camp Constanta.
25:29It's known as
25:30a convoy support centre
25:32or CSC.
25:35The purpose of the CSCs
25:36is to give the soldiers
25:38the amount of rest
25:39before they deploy it.
25:39They've been driving
25:40a long way
25:41to fix any of their vehicle problems
25:43they've got,
25:44allow them to eat.
25:46OK,
25:46so one of the main things
25:47we do here
25:48would be feed them,
25:49so the cookhouse
25:49is just behind.
25:52The biggest thing
25:53for them to do now
25:53is they are
25:54in force rest.
25:56Cool,
25:57find the bed space,
25:58both bed spaces,
25:59we'll top up,
25:59bottom of the air.
26:01We've got the odd question,
26:02can we leave camp,
26:02can we go and do this
26:03on the other,
26:04but most of the time
26:05it was, no,
26:05you're here to rest,
26:07you're going on exercise tomorrow,
26:08you're going to do more driving.
26:09It didn't sit well
26:10with some people,
26:11but most people
26:11just understood
26:12what they were meant to do.
26:16It's not just shut-eye
26:17the troops need
26:18at camps like this,
26:20keeping them fuelled
26:21with hot grub
26:21is a mission
26:22all of its own.
26:23This is the cookhouse,
26:24this is where the soldiers
26:25got their meals,
26:27they had,
26:27they had two meals with us,
26:29so they had dinner
26:31and breakfast.
26:33So we've got the,
26:33we've got the chef of action here,
26:35so we've got Corporal Spencer
26:36on the burgers,
26:38we've got Private Goodacre
26:40over there,
26:40and then you've got Corporal Brooks,
26:41Corporal Brooks is the head chef.
26:44This is Corporal Brooks,
26:46Army chef extraordinaire,
26:48with 23 years' service.
26:52Well, we've found about
26:53one and a half thousand people
26:55within this week,
26:56so we've literally gone through
26:58probably about two tonne of potatoes,
27:02gone through about 2,000 burgers,
27:05hot dogs,
27:06probably about the same.
27:08Today, Corporal Brooks
27:10has just four hours
27:11to rustle up dinner
27:11for several hundred
27:12freshly arrived soldiers.
27:17And he's got to have it
27:18on the table
27:19for 6pm sharp,
27:20so the troops
27:21can rack up the rest
27:22they need
27:22to hit the road again
27:24at first light.
27:26So today we're doing
27:27some bread and prawns
27:30for the guys' dinner tonight.
27:31So we're literally
27:32just panning in it,
27:33from the prawns
27:34into the flour,
27:36into the eggs,
27:37into the breadcrumbs.
27:39It is the same,
27:40an army can't move
27:42on its empty stomach,
27:43so, yeah,
27:44so,
27:45with the morale's low,
27:46they come in,
27:47they get a nice hot scarf,
27:48they come in,
27:49they move straight up again.
27:53Corporal Brooks
27:54has multiple different dishes
27:55to cook
27:56and hundreds of soldiers
27:57to feed,
27:58all with just a single gas stove,
28:01which also heats
28:02his only oven.
28:05My oven is literally
28:06just a metal box
28:07with a door on it,
28:09so literally you're
28:10in and out of that oven
28:11every couple of minutes.
28:13So literally I've got
28:14two number five cook sets,
28:15which are designed
28:16for 50 people
28:18per cook set,
28:19so we've only got two,
28:21so yeah,
28:22literally 400 out of that,
28:23it's hard going,
28:24it's long.
28:29The hours do rack up,
28:30like the other night
28:30I did 25 hours straight,
28:33and that's called
28:34dispense as well,
28:35he'd done 20 hours
28:36the other night,
28:37so it depends on the mission,
28:39you know,
28:39if you need to be in,
28:41you'll have to be in,
28:42because it's literally just you.
28:46OK, guys,
28:47you're going to have
28:47two burgers,
28:48this is chicken,
28:49prawns,
28:50and this is fillet,
28:51but it's one choice, right?
28:54With the troops
28:55filing in for dinner,
28:56it's mission accomplished
28:58for Corporal Brooks
28:59and his chefs.
29:02Corporal Brooks
29:02has been unbelievable,
29:04fillets and prawns,
29:05some nights,
29:06some of the stuff
29:07he's made
29:07in literally
29:08two little cook sets
29:10over there
29:10in a small oven,
29:11he'd put Gordon Ramsay
29:13to shame,
29:14honestly,
29:14wouldn't you,
29:14Brooksie?
29:15It's only
29:15Michelin star only
29:16in here,
29:17isn't it?
29:17Yeah.
29:18We need a bath
29:19for the boys,
29:19or not?
29:24In a war situation,
29:26transit camps like this
29:28serve a vital purpose,
29:29ensuring troops
29:31en route to the front line
29:32arrive having had
29:33sufficient rest,
29:35medical care,
29:36and food
29:36to be in the best
29:37possible shape to fight.
29:41We've got about
29:422,500 UK service personnel here,
29:45all the things
29:46that you need to survive,
29:47food, water,
29:48medical treatment,
29:49but it's also
29:50the fuel for the vehicles,
29:51it's the spare parts
29:52for when things break down,
29:54it's the ammunition
29:54for our weapons,
29:55and all of the other bits
29:57that sort of go with that.
29:59While these well-fed soldiers
30:01now bed down
30:01for some kit
30:02before pushing further east,
30:09our cameras are allowed
30:10inside a live,
30:12operational,
30:12classified briefing.
30:16This one
30:16at a NATO airfield
30:17in northern Germany.
30:20Circling counterclockwise
30:21over to the Baltic,
30:23back here,
30:2325 knots as an average.
30:26Listening in,
30:28the crew of one of NATO's
30:30most important
30:31intelligence-gathering assets.
30:33There might be some more laws
30:35on HF, UHF frequencies,
30:38especially during the night.
30:40Meet the AWACS,
30:43NATO's flying radar station,
30:45providing surveillance,
30:47command,
30:48control,
30:48and communication capabilities
30:50across Allied countries.
30:55From 30,000 feet,
30:57the AWACS's giant
30:59spinning radar dome
31:00allows NATO
31:01to watch an area
31:02the size of Poland,
31:04tracking 300 targets
31:06at once.
31:09NATO,
31:0906,
31:10prepare takeoff,
31:101207.
31:12Zero,
31:13stand by.
31:14Okay,
31:15we're ready.
31:16Last five.
31:16Yes, last five.
31:18Ready to go by,
31:19let's make it clear.
31:19More takeoff?
31:20Perfect.
31:26Each plane can monitor
31:27troop movements
31:28from up to 500 kilometers away.
31:45The AWACS serves
31:47as a flying air traffic control
31:48and battle management center.
31:51Today,
31:52it's on a live operation,
31:54keeping a close watch
31:56on Russian activity
31:57in the Baltic Sea.
32:00Russia's long been suspected
32:01of damaging
32:02and destroying
32:02vital infrastructure cables
32:04deep underwater.
32:07And that's
32:08what today's mission
32:09is all about.
32:12If you would have said
32:13like half a year ago,
32:14like,
32:14oh,
32:15we're going to sabotage
32:16all that internet cables
32:17or whatever,
32:18everybody would have said,
32:18you're crazy,
32:20that's not going to happen.
32:21But it is actually happening
32:23that somebody thinks
32:24it's a good action
32:25to lower an anchor
32:26and plow through the cables.
32:29I mean,
32:29all of a sudden,
32:30it's a reality
32:31and we have to do our job
32:32not to prevent that.
32:36The moment the crew
32:37spots a suspicious ship,
32:39they're straight
32:40on the radio,
32:41calling in the local Navy
32:43and Air Force
32:43to check it out.
32:47What we are trying
32:48to do
32:48is first detect
32:49if there are vessels
32:50of interest.
32:51Are they performing
32:52any suspicious behavior?
32:54A ship
32:55going from port A
32:56to port B
32:57and that starts
32:58loitering somewhere
32:59in the specific area,
33:00why wouldn't you do that?
33:02That kind of stuff
33:03is what we're
33:04specifically looking for.
33:08There are warnings
33:09of a possible
33:10serious escalation
33:11between NATO
33:12and Russia
33:13after an aerial
33:14confrontation
33:14over the Baltic Sea
33:16and accusations
33:17Russia violated
33:18NATO's airspace.
33:21The importance
33:22of these ongoing
33:23AWACS operations
33:24became clear
33:25when an oil tanker,
33:27suspected of being part
33:28of Russia's shadow fleet,
33:30entered Estonian
33:31territorial waters.
33:33Sanctioned by Britain,
33:36the Estonian Navy
33:37immediately attempted
33:38to seize the vessel.
33:41This is Estonian warship,
33:42Papa 6732.
33:46Your request
33:48will be denied.
33:49Follow my instructions.
33:52Altern your course
33:53to 105 immediately.
33:55Over.
33:57The Russians film
33:58from the tanker's bridge
33:59as the Estonians
34:01attempt to redirect
34:01the vessel
34:02to a nearby port
34:03for an inspection.
34:07The ship is refusing
34:09to follow
34:09the Navy's instructions.
34:31This is exactly
34:33the kind of flashpoint
34:34that could easily spiral
34:36into full-scale war.
34:41She's turning
34:42towards the stone
34:44of the vessel.
34:45Out of nowhere,
34:47a Russian
34:48Su-35 fighter jet
34:49suddenly appears,
34:51crossing into
34:52NATO airspace.
34:53Its purpose,
34:55it would seem,
34:56is to intimidate
34:57the Estonian military
34:58to back down
34:59from seizing the tanker.
35:02Estonian authorities
35:03said that it
35:04violated NATO airspace
35:06for close to a minute.
35:08It was then
35:09escorted back
35:10to Russian waters
35:11by the Estonian Navy.
35:18Russia looks
35:18to be probing
35:19NATO's nerve,
35:21testing whether
35:22the alliance
35:22really will stand
35:23by every member
35:24with its shadowy
35:26campaign of undersea
35:27sabotage
35:28in the Baltic Sea.
35:33coming up.
35:35Steadfast dark
35:36gets serious
35:36as Marines
35:37storm the beaches
35:38in a show of force,
35:40right on the edge
35:41of the heavily contested
35:42Black Sea region.
35:45Dozens of ships,
35:46dozens of aircraft,
35:48thousands of soldiers.
35:49We were able
35:50to demonstrate
35:50our capability
35:51across huge geographic
35:53spans of land.
36:05Today I'm heading off
36:06to Mount Whitney
36:07to meet the captain.
36:09The Mount Whitney
36:10or the USS Mount Whitney
36:12has just come back
36:12from the Baltic operations
36:14as a NATO exercise.
36:17USS Mount Whitney
36:19has a command
36:20and control platform
36:22controlling a whole
36:23multitude of ships
36:25and forces
36:26across the NATO alliance.
36:29We're with
36:30Royal Navy Commander
36:31Carl Harwood
36:32and today
36:33we've been invited
36:35on board
36:35the US Navy's
36:36Europe-based
36:37Sixth Fleet command ship.
36:39Should our forces
36:40go to war with Russia,
36:42it's this ship
36:43that will command
36:44NATO's operations
36:45at sea.
36:51Permission to come on board?
36:52Hello, please.
36:53Come forward.
36:54How we doing?
36:55Good.
36:55Hey, how you doing?
36:55Captain Price,
36:56commanding officer.
36:57Welcome aboard.
36:57Sir, nice to meet you.
36:58I'm Carl Harwood.
36:59Come on, Harwood.
37:01While the British land
37:02component of the
37:03Allied Reaction Force
37:04grinds its way
37:05across Europe,
37:07the ARF's
37:08amphibious units
37:09are running drills
37:10to see how fast
37:11they can hit
37:11the front lines
37:12from the sea,
37:14as well as
37:15showcasing their
37:16naval power
37:16as a deterrent
37:17to Russia.
37:20One of the
37:21unique capabilities
37:22and why Mount Whitney
37:23is probably the most
37:24capable command and
37:24control ship
37:25in the world
37:26is because
37:26we have that
37:27capability
37:28and the ability
37:29to support
37:29both the U.S.
37:30and NATO forces
37:31here on Mount Whitney.
37:33We are just there
37:34as a command and
37:35control platform
37:36working to practice
37:38command and controlling
37:39amphibious forces.
37:40And we need to be ready
37:41to go day one.
37:42And so every time
37:42we do this exercise
37:43as far as tactics
37:44and techniques,
37:45procedures change,
37:46we want to be up to date
37:47so when something
37:47happens on day one
37:48we are ready to go
37:49enter and operate
37:51together, you know,
37:52seamlessly
37:56around the
37:57Mediterranean coast
37:58from Naples
37:59and up into the
38:00Aegean.
38:01This immediate response
38:02from NATO's naval forces
38:04to any Russian provocation
38:05is about to be put
38:07to the ultimate test.
38:14This is exercise
38:16steadfast dart
38:17from the sea.
38:18NATO's biggest,
38:20most complex live exercise
38:21of 2025.
38:26Our cameras
38:27have been invited
38:28onto the Spanish
38:29commanding aircraft carrier
38:30Juan Carlos I
38:32to witness a trial
38:33seaborn assault
38:34and storming
38:35of an enemy-held beach
38:36first hand.
38:38If we do go to war
38:40this will be
38:41the D-Day landings
38:42of the modern age.
38:48On deck
38:49Harrier jump jets
38:51stand by.
38:54Below deck
38:55Marines from across
38:57the alliance
38:57are poised
38:58ready and waiting
39:00to board dozens
39:00of landing craft
39:02and Zodiac ribboats.
39:06On the flight deck
39:07we have multiple
39:08aircrafts
39:09so we operate
39:10Seahawks
39:10we have also
39:11Harriers on board
39:13and the Harriers
39:14they do
39:14also protection
39:16against any threats
39:18coming from
39:19the land inside.
39:22An amphibious operation
39:24is normally
39:24the most difficult
39:25type of military operation
39:28that can exist
39:28so we have to
39:30coordinate
39:31many many aspects
39:32of it
39:33like air operations
39:34and we also had
39:36an integration
39:37of a special ops team
39:39we had a landing force
39:40which is like
39:41the core
39:42of amphibious operations.
39:44In the event
39:45of a Russian invasion
39:47this type of full-scale
39:49amphibious landing
39:50could be how
39:51NATO forces seek
39:52to rapidly reclaim
39:54land lost to Russia.
39:58The first wave
39:59of this operation
40:02hundreds of heavily armed
40:03Spanish and Greek
40:04Marines launch
40:05to attack the shoreline
40:06on Zodiac ribboats.
40:09Once the operation
40:10starts
40:11we should get
40:12a lot of
40:13excitement
40:13and tension.
40:20In a real war
40:21these Marines
40:22are sitting ducks
40:23on the water
40:24reaching the beach
40:26en masse
40:26and at speed
40:27is their mission.
40:29For this exercise
40:31they are racing
40:32the clock
40:33own the beach
40:34as fast as possible
40:35and then move inland.
40:38The second assault wave
40:39follows close behind
40:40dozens of landing craft
40:42carrying armoured vehicles.
40:45The Marines on board
40:46are already at the wheel
40:47primed to storm the beach
40:49the moment they touch land.
40:53The third wave
40:55Chinook helicopters
40:56Marines hanging off the back
40:58jumping directly
40:59into the sea.
41:03These Marines
41:04are the first boots
41:05on the ground
41:06securing the area
41:07and to make sure
41:08that the other parties
41:09following them
41:11with the landing craft
41:12and all the equipment
41:13and the vehicles
41:14can arrive safely
41:15at the beach.
41:17With F-16 fighter jets
41:19capable of flying
41:201,500 miles an hour
41:22twice the speed of sound
41:25and Harrier jump jets
41:26providing air support
41:27for the landing force
41:28the armoured vehicles
41:29are able to touch down
41:31and roll off.
41:34The landing area here
41:36is located to a
41:38Greece air base
41:39and they operate
41:40the F-16 here
41:41and you can hear them.
41:46The sound of freedom
41:48is nice.
41:50The final wave
41:51is the most dangerous
41:53Marines fast roping down
41:55from Seahawk helicopters
41:56within seconds
41:57to avoid being picked off
41:59by enemy fire.
42:01In a war situation
42:02both the pilots
42:04and the attacking Marines
42:05are at huge risk.
42:13everything went well.
42:15All the personnel
42:16works perfectly.
42:19There's a purpose
42:20that we do this
42:21on the south-eastern flank
42:22of NATO here.
42:24It's a clear signal
42:24to the east
42:25that NATO is ready
42:27to defend its territory.
42:29The message is clear,
42:30yeah, don't mess with us.
42:31Don't mess with NATO.
42:35For the generals
42:37in charge
42:37of the deployment
42:38of NATO's new
42:39Allied Reaction Force
42:40on both land and sea,
42:43Steadfast Dart
42:44is going according to plan
42:45so far.
42:49We demonstrated
42:51our ability
42:52to move
42:53large quantity
42:54of forces,
42:56land, sea and air
42:57across vast
42:58expanses of territory.
43:02Soldiers,
43:03supplies,
43:04fuel,
43:04ammunition,
43:05aircraft,
43:07large machinery
43:08across many different nations,
43:11across many different borders,
43:14proved our ability
43:15to respond quickly
43:16to a threat.
43:21But with the war
43:23in Ukraine grinding on,
43:24no one here needs
43:26a briefing on why
43:27these exercises
43:28in this region
43:29matter.
43:32all of us are trying
43:34to gauge
43:35what happens
43:37if Ukraine fails.
43:39Russia may see
43:40weakness
43:41and opportunity
43:42and they talk openly
43:44about reclaiming
43:45Estonia,
43:46Latvia,
43:46Lithuania.
43:48I could imagine
43:49a scenario
43:50where they would
43:51launch an attack
43:52against NATO country.
43:54senior political
43:56and military figures
43:57inside NATO,
43:58including the
43:59Secretary-General,
44:01now speak frankly
44:01about Russia
44:02posing a credible threat
44:03to member states
44:04within a few years.
44:07Recent border provocations
44:08in Poland,
44:10Romania and Estonia
44:11highlight the dangers
44:12Russia poses
44:13to our peace
44:14and security.
44:18We assess in NATO
44:19that Russia
44:20could attack
44:20within five to seven years
44:22only by preparing
44:23for the worst case
44:24which is war with Russia
44:26do we deter war
44:27with Russia.
44:29We are at a crossroads
44:31in history today.
44:33This is not a moment
44:34for more at all.
44:36It's time to act.
44:38The one thing
44:39our history tells us
44:41is that
44:42if there is conflict
44:43in Europe
44:44it will wash up
44:45on our shores.
44:49We've witnessed
44:50NATO stress testing
44:51its ability
44:52to hurl manpower
44:53and firepower
44:55at its borders
44:56with Russia
44:57at breakneck speed
44:59as both a defence
45:01and a deterrence.
45:03But exercises alone
45:05won't stop Putin
45:07from probing
45:07the West's resolve.
45:09Ultimately
45:10more men
45:12and women
45:13may soon have
45:14to stand ready
45:15to risk everything
45:17to hold Europe's
45:19front line.
45:22Armias have to expand
45:24to fight wars
45:25of national survival.
45:26What we've got to ensure
45:28is that
45:29the armed forces
45:30of this country
45:31reflect properly
45:33the political statements
45:35about the first duty
45:36of government
45:37being to protect
45:38the country.
45:39And we've got to hold
45:40our political leaders' feet
45:42firmly to the fire
45:43to ensure that happens.
45:49Next time,
45:51after almost a month
45:53on the road,
45:54the British finally arrive
45:55at their front line base
45:57and the full-scale war games
45:59and the full-scale war games
45:59begin.
46:01Come on!
46:03Six L-118 night guns
46:05lays down that suppressing fire
46:07to support the close combat elements.
46:11And we join the Americans
46:13defending the Polish border.
46:16Come on in!
46:17First team comes in
46:18close these two rooms.
46:22We're not at war,
46:23but we're definitely
46:24not at peace.
46:28We're somewhere in between.
46:30We're somewhere in between.
46:322-34-V,
46:32and we'll be right back.
46:323-34-V
46:339-25-V
46:33đâu
46:33Do
46:33Do
46:34The
46:34?
46:34?
47:00geht
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