Category: Security policy

Danger and opportunity - The Kiel Ammunition Clearance Week 2021

Munitions in the sea - Kiel Munition Clearance Week aims to promote the removal of contaminated sites in the sea Over 1.5 million tonnes of munitions are rusting away on the seabed. Their explosives endanger shipping, the environment and people. The issue is not only relevant for coastal regions: Carcinogenic substances from the munitions enter the food chain via fish. To visualise the quantity of mines and bombs, imagine a goods train full of ammunition. The wagons stretch from Paris to Moscow - that's 2500 kilometres! How and by what means can this quantity of contaminated sites be disposed of quickly, safely and...

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Four years in the theatre of operations - the British landing ship Cardigan Bay returns

After four years, the British landing ship Cardigan Bay returns home. The ship and crew were stationed in Bahrain as part of a forward deployment together with four minesweepers. During her time in the Persian Gulf, Cardigan Bay, which belonged to the Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA), served as a command and supply ship and also took part in various manoeuvres during this time. This was most recently the case during Artemis Trident, a joint exercise with French and American units that takes place every two years. In addition to the main focus on mine hunting, this year's exercise also included self-defence against attacks from the US...

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AKK visits USS Charleston

Defence Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer visited the US island of Guam last weekend. At the Apra Harbor naval base, she was given a tour of the USS Charleston, a Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) of the US Navy. She also took the opportunity to talk to soldiers. Kramp-Karrenbauer is currently on a trip to Asia, which has already taken her to South Korea. While this could be one of the last major business trips for the minister, it was a premiere for the Airbus A 350, which has been available to the air force since January: the first long-haul delegation flight. Guam is an important outpost for the...

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Werra is coming back!

It was a cold Friday with temperatures around zero degrees when the Werra left Kiel at the beginning of January. Under her commander, Corvette Captain Robert Lehmann, 61 male and 10 female soldiers took their leave on board the tender and set course for the Mediterranean. As part of the Standing NATO Maritime Group 2 (SNMG 2), they took on a variety of tasks in the Aegean over the following four months. The focus was on gathering information to build up a picture of the situation and cooperating with the Greek and Turkish coastguards and the European border protection agency Frontex. In order to establish a direct link to the partners on land...

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Holland in the Caribbean

Another of the country's warships is now travelling in the sea area around the Netherlands Antilles. HNLMS Holland was welcomed with 21 gun salutes from Fort Krommelijn on Curacao. The Holland is being deployed as a so-called station ship and will remain on site for several months. This position was last filled by the Groningen, a sister ship of the Holland, which returned to its home port of Den Helder in mid-January. She had to abandon her mission in the Caribbean prematurely because urgent repairs were needed to the starboard shaft. As another ship was not available for this task at short notice, the function of the station ship had to be taken over by...

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