The Inspector General of the German Armed Forces, Carsten Breuer, has reaffirmed Germany’s special responsibility within NATO in view of the upcoming major military manoeuvre Quadriga.
“Germany is the backbone of Europe’s defence,” Germany’s highest-ranking soldier told dpa in Berlin. “The Quadriga exercise is an important step towards war readiness with the aim of deterring an enemy.”
More than 12,000 Bundeswehr soldiers will be involved in the exercise, the first alert phase of which has already begun.
This makes it the largest exercise of German land forces since the start of the Russia’s war in Ukraine.
The participating soldiers are undergoing training for alerting procedures, deploying to NATO’s north-eastern and south-eastern external borders, and engaging in combat exercises.
Deterrence – together with the training – is a key objective amid increasing concerns that Russia could be ready to test NATO’s will.
The German Quadriga exercise is part of NATO’s large-scale manoeuvre called Steadfast Defender, in which a total of 90,000 soldiers are being mobilized by the end of May.
