Category: Security policy

Ukraine - War harms the Baltic Sea

The war in Ukraine has serious consequences for the environment in the Baltic Sea. The Commission for the Protection of the Marine Environment of the Baltic Sea - also known as the Helsinki Commission (HELCOM) - which is currently chaired by Germany, suspended its meetings one week after the Russian invasion on 24 February. The situation has paralysed the work of the intergovernmental organisation, which was founded in 1974 by Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden and the European Union. Over the years, some successes have been achieved, particularly at the wastewater treatment plants in St. Petersburg and Kaliningrad. Due to the sanctions, the maintenance...

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BALTOPS 22 manoeuvre starts in June

The 51st US Baltic Operations, the most important maritime exercise in the Baltic Sea region, will run from 5 to 17 June. Fourteen NATO countries, two NATO partner nations, over 45 ships, more than 75 aircraft and around 7,000 people will take part in BALTOPS 22. Participating nations include Belgium, Bulgaria, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Sweden, Turkey, the United Kingdom and the United States. They will test a variety of capabilities designed to impressively demonstrate the flexibility of naval forces. These include amphibious operations, live-fire exercises, anti-submarine warfare and air defence, as well as mine sweeping, explosive ordnance disposal, the use of unmanned underwater vehicles and...

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China pushes for co-operation agreement

Ten Pacific states to sign it China is seeking to get 10 small Pacific states to agree to a far-reaching agreement that covers everything from maritime security to fisheries. There is a danger that Beijing will use the agreement to seize control of the region. A draft of the agreement published by AP shows that China wants to train police officers for the Pacific region and expand co-operation in law enforcement. China also wants to jointly develop a marine plan for fishing, which also includes the lucrative tuna fishery in the Pacific. Cooperation in the operation of the internet in the region is to be strengthened and...

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Denmark gives Ukraine Harpoon maritime target missile

This was announced by US Secretary of Defence Lloyd Austin on 23 May 2022 as one of the results of another meeting of an international coalition for military support for Ukraine with representatives from Kiev. In this case, twenty nations negotiated, but more precise details of the participants were not disclosed. As early as 19 May, Reuters reported that Washington was considering sending Harpoon and Naval Strike Missile (NSM) missiles to Ukraine. With the Danish offer announced during the 'donor conference', the problems associated with such a transfer have been solved. Firstly, the US armed forces themselves do not have platforms that would enable the deployment of Harpoons from land to sea....

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The Neptune anti-ship missile: The weapon that can sink cruisers

And: a small island with strategic significance It was a home-made Ukrainian weapon - two R-360 Neptune anti-ship missiles, to be precise - that brought the defenders what was probably the most memorable victory of the war so far: the sinking of the Russian Black Sea flagship Moskva. Why was the Moskva so symbolically important for both sides? On the same day that Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a "special military operation" to "demilitarise and denazify" Ukraine, the guided missile cruiser "Moskva", the flagship of the Russian Black Sea Fleet, arrived off the tiny Snake Island accompanied by the patrol ship "Vasily Bykov" and demanded the surrender of the 13 soldiers stationed there. The answer...

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