BALTOPS#BALTOPS 2022 (51st)

File:NATO BALTOPS 2015 logo.png

BALTOPS (Baltic Operations){{cite web |url=http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/ops/baltops.htm |title=globalsecurity.org: Baltic Operations |accessdate=28 September 2008 | archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20080912122119/http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/ops/baltops.htm| archivedate= 12 September 2008 | url-status= live}} is an annual military exercise, held and sponsored by the Commander, United States Naval Forces Europe, since 1971, in the Baltic Sea and the regions surrounding it.

The purpose of BALTOPS is to train{{cite web |url=http://www.navy.mil/search/display.asp?story_id=37575 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120805124545/http://www.navy.mil/search/display.asp?story_id=37575 |url-status=dead |archive-date=August 5, 2012 |title=Carrier Strike Group 12 Prepares for BALTOPS 2008 |accessdate=28 September 2008 }} gunnery, replenishment at sea, anti-submarine warfare (ASW), radar tracking & interception, mine countermeasures, seamanship, search and rescue, maritime interdiction operations and scenarios dealing with potential real world crises and maritime security.

BALTOPS in the 1980s and 1990s

In 1985, Commander, Destroyer Squadron 14, was tasked with exercising freedom of navigation in the Baltic and U.S. support for Northern European NATO countries. The mission of the first BALTOPS was to 'show-the-flag' to maintain the U.S. right to sail in international waters even those in the Soviet Union's backyard. BALTOPS '85 added the objective of increasing the U.S. Navy's tactical proficiency in a strategically vital and challenging sea and air environment.

To do this, Commander Destroyer Squadron 14 was assigned a Surface Action Group of six ships: {{USS|Ticonderoga|CG-47}}, {{USS|Iowa|BB-61}}, {{USS|Aylwin|FF-1081}}, {{USS|Halyburton|FFG-40}}, {{USS|Pharris|FF-1094}}, and {{USS|Merrimack|AO-179}}.

In late June 1990, Rear Admiral Thomas D. Paulson, Commander Cruiser-Destroyer Group Two, led {{USS|Harry E. Yarnell|CG-17}} and {{USS|Kauffman|FFG-59}} to visit Poland in conjunction with BALTOPS '90. Their port call at Gdynia represented the first visit by United States Navy vessels to Poland since 1927.{{cite web | title= USS Kauffman (FFG 59) and USS Harry E. Yarnell (CG 17) Polish Port Visit | url= http://www.navy.mil/search/display.asp?story_id=17869 | archive-url= https://archive.today/20120805071409/http://www.navy.mil/search/display.asp?story_id=17869 | url-status= dead | archive-date= August 5, 2012 | work= Navsource Online: History Page | publisher= Navsource.org | date= 29 December 2006 | accessdate=12 October 2012}}

Since 1993 it has been a major contributor to the NATO programme Partnership for Peace, which aims to strengthen and create trust amongst former Soviet Union states (Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania) its former satellites (Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia) and NATO. All these states have since joined NATO.

Common participants are (but not limited to): Canada, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Netherlands, Poland, Russia, Sweden, United Kingdom, United States of America (commanding country)

The 26th annual maritime exercise Baltic Operations (BALTOPS) '98 in the Western Baltic Sea took place from June 8–June 19, 1998. During the exercise, the commander, Carrier Group Eight, commanded the exercise from USS Vella Gulf.

BALTOPS 2008 (36th)

File:US Navy 080611-N-3396B-129 Ships from various navies participating in Baltic Operations (BALTOPS) maneuver into formation.jpg

BALTOPS 2008 took place between 8 June to 18 June 2008. Its objective was to promote mutual understanding, confidence, cooperation, and interoperability among the forces and personnel of the participating nations, as well as support national unit and staff training through a series of exercises. BALTOPS 2008 included surface warships, submarines, aircraft, and ground forces from Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, Poland, Russia, Sweden, the United Kingdom, and the United States.{{cite web | title= Carrier Strike Group 12 Prepares for BALTOPS 2008 | url= http://www.navy.mil/search/display.asp?story_id=37575 | archive-url= https://archive.today/20120805124545/http://www.navy.mil/search/display.asp?story_id=37575 | url-status= dead | archive-date= August 5, 2012 | work= NNS080602-20 | publisher= Carrier Strike Group 12 Public Affairs | date= 2 June 2008 | accessdate=6 June 2012}}{{cite web | author= Lt. j.g. Dennis Panos, USN | title= USS Gettysburg Completes BALTOPS | url= http://news.jacksonville.com/military_archives/archives/2008/MayportMirror/Mayport080708/080708-z-005-MM-MayportMi.pdf | work= The Mirror | publisher= Naval Station Mayport | date= | accessdate=20 April 2009}}

Rear Admiral Daniel P. Holloway supervised BALTOPS 2008, and the guided-missile cruiser {{USS|Gettysburg|CG-64|2}} served as his flagship during this exercise. Gettysburg was accompanied by the guided-missile destroyer {{USS|Cole|DDG-67|2}} and the fleet oiler {{USNS|Patuxent|T-AO-201|2}} as part of the U.S. Navy's Task Group 369.4.{{cite web | title= USNS Patuxent praised as BALTOP 2008 ends | url= http://www.msc.navy.mil/msfsc/bzs/patuxent2.htm | archive-url= https://archive.today/20121212035442/http://www.msc.navy.mil/msfsc/bzs/patuxent2.htm | url-status= dead | archive-date= December 12, 2012 | publisher= Military Sealift Fleet Support Command | date= 8 June 2008 | accessdate=2 June 2012}} Following BALTOPS 2008, the Cole paid a port visit to Stockholm, Sweden, on 27 June 2008, and Gettysburg paid a post-exercise port visit to Kiel, Germany.{{cite web | author= Lt. (j.g.) Amanda Canedo, USN | title= USS Cole to visit Sweden after exercise | url= http://www.eucom.mil/article/20524/uss-cole-visit-sweden-exercise | work= USS Cole Public Affairs | publisher= U.S. European Command | date= 30 June 2008 | accessdate= 2 May 2012 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20120926071250/http://www.eucom.mil/article/20524/uss-cole-visit-sweden-exercise | archive-date= 26 September 2012 | url-status= dead }} Gettysburg returned to Naval Station Mayport, Florida, on 14 July 2008, completing this two-month-long 2008 surge deployment for Carrier Strike Group Twelve.

BALTOPS 2009 (37th)

On 16 June 2009, USNI bloggers took part in a DOD Bloggers Roundtable with Rear Admiral John Christenson, USN, Commander of Carrier Strike Group 12, the Enterprise carrier strike group. The topic of the call was BALTOPS 2009. According to DODLive, “BALTOPS 09 is a joint operation that allows personnel from partner nations to prepare for disaster relief efforts, humanitarian assistance, and peacekeeping efforts.” Moreover, according to DODLive, “this is the 37th anniversary of Exercise BALTOPS and includes Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Netherlands, Poland, Sweden, the United Kingdom, and the United States.”

BALTOPS 2009 participating vessels:

BALTOPS 2011 (39th)

BALTOPS 2011 occurs from 3–17 June 2011 among NATO and Partnership for Peace participants. Led by the United States, BALTOPS is a USEUCOM directed, COMUSNAVEUR sponsored, and United States Sixth Fleet executed exercise. The primary planning and execution commander is Commander Carrier Strike Group Eight. The mission of BALTOPS 2011 was interoperability among forces and personnel of participating national unit and staff training objectives through a series of robust training exercises.

BALTOPS 2011 participating countries include Belgium, Denmark, Estonia, France, Georgia, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, The Netherlands, Poland, Russia, Sweden, and the United States.

BALTOPS 2011 participating vessels:

BALTOPS 2015 (43rd)

17 countries took part in BALTOPS which started on 5 June and lasted till 20 June. Allied participation demonstrates NATO's resolve to defend the Baltic region, and will hone the ability of Allies and partners to work together.{{Cite web|last=NATO|title=NATO Allies begin naval exercise BALTOPS in the Baltic Sea|url=http://www.nato.int/cps/en/natohq/news_120407.htm|access-date=18 September 2020|website=NATO|language=en}}

Participants include Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Georgia, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Sweden, Turkey, the United Kingdom, and the United States.

BALTOPS 2015 participating vessels:

BALTOPS 2020 (49th)

BALTOPS 2020 took place from 7–16 June 2020 among NATO and Partnership for Peace participants. The exercises were concluded by the United States Sixth Fleet.{{Cite web|date=11 June 2020|title=NATO Exercise BALTOPS 2020 Underway|url=https://www.joint-forces.com/exercise-news/33208-nato-exercise-baltops-2020-underway|access-date=2020-09-18|website=Joint Forces News|language=en-GB}}{{Cite web|date=2020-06-11|title=BALTOPS 2020 Will Only Hold At-Sea Events With Ships Commanded from Shore|url=https://news.usni.org/2020/06/11/baltops-2020-will-only-hold-at-sea-events-with-ships-commanded-from-shore|access-date=18 September 2020|website=USNI News|language=en-US}}

BALTOPS 2020 participating countries include Canada, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Turkey, the United Kingdom and the United States.

BALTOPS 2020 participating vessels:

BALTOPS 2022 (51st)

A total of 14 NATO nations, including NATO partner nations Finland and Sweden, took part in the 51st BALTOPS exercise between 5 and 17 June 2022.{{cite web | url=https://www.navalnews.com/naval-news/2022/06/baltops-22-multinational-exercise-kicks-off-in-the-baltic-sea/ | title=BALTOPS 22 Multinational Exercise kicks off in the Baltic Sea | date=6 June 2022 }} The usual mine hunting exercise was augmented this year with U.S. experimental mine hunting unmanned underwater vehicles and the collection of environmental data for target recognition algorithms, in conjunction with the Naval Undersea Warfare Center and Naval Information Warfare Center Pacific.{{cite news |url=https://seapowermagazine.org/baltops-22-a-perfect-opportunity-for-research-and-resting-new-technology/ |title=BALTOPS 22: A Perfect Opportunity for Research and testing New Technology |magazine=Seapower |date=14 June 2022 |access-date=8 February 2023}}{{cite press release |url=https://www.c6f.navy.mil/Press-Room/News/News-Display/Article/3060004/baltops-22-a-perfect-opportunity-for-research-and-testing-new-technology/fbclid/baltops-22-a-perfect-opportunity-for-research-and-testing-new-technology/ |title=BALTOPS 22: A perfect opportunity for research and testing new technology |work=U.S. Sixth Fleet |date=12 June 2022 |access-date=10 February 2023}}

BALTOPS 2022 was shadowed by two Russian Karakurt-class corvettes.{{cite web | url=https://news.usni.org/2022/06/07/russian-corvettes-spotted-shadowing-baltops-exercise | title=Russian Corvettes Spotted Shadowing BALTOPS Exercise | date=7 June 2022 }}

Investigative journalist Seymour Hersh alleged in his newsletter that during the exercises, the U.S. Navy planted explosive charges on the Nord Stream pipelines, resulting in their explosion later that year.{{Cite news |last1=Midolo |first1=Emanuele |last2=Bennetts |first2=Marc |date=8 February 2023 |title=US bombed Nord Stream gas pipelines, claims investigative journalist Seymour Hersh |language=en |work=The Times |url=https://www.thetimes.com/article/us-bombed-nord-stream-gas-pipelines-claims-investigative-journalist-seymour-hersh-s730dnnfz |access-date=20 November 2023 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20230208171200/https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/us-bombed-nord-stream-gas-pipelines-claims-investigative-journalist-seymour-hersh-s730dnnfz |archive-date=8 February 2023 |url-status=live |issn=}} The U.S. government denied this claim, calling it "utterly false and complete fiction."{{Cite web | last=Hunnicutt | first=Trevor | date=8 February 2023 | title=White House says blog post on Nord Stream explosion 'utterly false' | url=https://www.reuters.com/world/us/white-house-says-blog-post-nord-stream-explosion-is-utterly-false-2023-02-08 | access-date= 26 February 2023 | website=Reuters | language=en}} As of February 2023, according to The Washington Post, no other media outlet has corroborated Hersh's allegations.{{Cite news | last=DeYoung | first=Karen | date=22 February 2023 | title=Russia, blaming U.S. sabotage, calls for U.N. probe of Nord Stream | url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2023/02/22/russia-un-nord-stream-hersh-investigation | access-date=26 February 2023 | newspaper=Washington Post | language=en}} In October 2024, the Swiss newspaper Die Weltwoche wrote an article implicating the {{USS|Kearsarge|LHD-3|6}} and other US Navy ships from BALTOPS 22 in the Nord Stream sabotage without referring to Hersh's allegations.{{Cite news |url=https://weltwoche.ch/daily/us-marine-soll-kurz-vor-nord-stream-zerstoerung-mit-abgeschaltetem-transponder-am-tatort-gewesen-sein-berichtet-daenische-zeitung/ |title=US-Marine soll kurz vor Nord-Stream-Zerstörung am Tatort gewesen sein, berichtet dänische Zeitung |trans-title=US Navy said to have been at crime scene shortly before Nord Stream was destroyed, Danish newspaper reports |website=Die Weltwoche |date=5 October 2024 |access-date=10 October 2024 |lang=de}}

BALTOPS 2022 participating vessels:

BALTOPS 2023 (52nd)

BALTOPS 2023 took place from 4 to 16 June 2023.{{Cite web |last=Moore-Carrillo |first=Jaime |date=2023-06-16 |title=US, NATO wrap up joint exercises in the Baltics, Europe's High North |url=https://www.militarytimes.com/flashpoints/2023/06/16/us-nato-wrap-up-joint-exercises-in-the-baltics-europes-high-north/ |access-date=2024-07-01 |website=Military Times |language=en}}

BALTOPS 2024 (53rd)

BALTOPS 2024 took place from 4 to 20 June 2024. It was the largest{{Clarify|reason=largest as defined by which criteria?|date=July 2024}} BALTOPS exercise ever held and the first one to have all participants being NATO members (after Sweden joined NATO).{{Cite web |title=BALTOPS 24 concludes in Kiel, Germany |url=https://www.usff.navy.mil/Press-Room/News-Stories/Article/3814526/baltops-24-concludes-in-kiel-germany/http://www.usff.navy.mil/Press-Room/News-Stories/Article/3814526/baltops-24-concludes-in-kiel-germany/ |access-date=2024-07-01 |website=U.S. Fleet Forces Command |language=en-US}}{{dead link|date=April 2025|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}{{Cite web |date=2024-06-18 |title=Thousands of NATO troops join drills in the strategically sensitive Baltic Sea region |url=https://apnews.com/article/nato-baltic-defense-military-exercise-poland-baltops-7dabc332a7c298f93a9717c485e7f2b3 |access-date=2024-07-01 |website=AP News |language=en}}

Gallery

File:East German frigate Berlin underway on 1 October 1985 (6409381).jpg|East Germany Koni class frigate Berlin underway during NATO Exercise BALTOPS '85, on 1 October 1985

File:USS Harry E. Yarnell (CG-17) docked at Gdynia, Poland, on 27 June 1990 (6457711).jpg|USS Harry E. Yarnell at Gdynia during BALTOPS '90

File:HMS Smyge front.jpg|HSwMS Smyge underway during BALTOPS '94, on 7 June 1994

File:US Navy 040611-N-1823S-244 The Polish Lublin-class minelayer ORP Poznan, opens its ramp in preparation to receive U.S. Marine Reservists on a Zodiac combat raiding raft.jpg|ORP Poznań during BALTOPS '04

File:US Navy 050606-N-5258M-011 Russian destroyer RFS Nastoychivyy (DD 610) is currently underway participating in Baltic Operations (BALTOPS) 2005.jpg|Russian Navy Nastoychivyy underway during BALTOPS '05

File:Finnish Rauma-class missile boat FNS Naantali (PTG 73).jpg|Finnish Navy Naantali underway during BALTOPS '08

File:US Navy 100608-N-3970R-426 The amphibious command ship USS Mount Whitney (LCC-JCC 20) and the Russian navy landing ship Kaliningrad (LSTM 102) are underway in formation on the second day of Baltic Operations (BALTOPS) exercise.jpg|USS Mount Whitney during BALTOPS '10

File:A Pilatus PC-9 aircraft simulates an airborne chemical attack against the Royal Danish Navy ocean patrol vessel HDMS Thetis (F357) in the Baltic Sea June 13, 2013, as part of Baltic Operations (BALTOPS) 2013 130613-N-ZZ999-034.jpg|A Pilatus PC-9 simulates an airborne chemical attack against the Royal Danish Navy HDMS Thetis (F357) during BALTOPS '13, on 13 June 2013.

File:180609-N-TJ319-0139 (42734546251).jpg|TCG Gediz and HDMS Iver Huitfeldt during BALTOPS '19, on 9 June 2019

File:KDM Søløven (Y311) at anchor in the Baltic Sea on 16 June 2019 (190616-N-FC670-005).JPG|Royal Danish Navy patrol vessel Søløven at anchor during BALTOPS '19, on 16 June 2019

File:Lithuanian minesweeper Skalvis (M53) underway in the Baltic Sea on 16 June 2020 (200615-N-NO901-0036).JPG|Lithuanian Navy Hunt-class mine-hunter Skalvis during BALTOPS '20

File:German frigate Lübeck (F214) underway in the Baltic Sea on 8 June 2020 (200608-N-RG482-0423).JPG|German Navy frigate Lübeck underway during BALTOPS '20, on 8 June 2020

References

Category:Military exercises involving the United States

Category:Baltic Sea

Category:1971 establishments in Europe