The Barents Observer – Ships operating for Standing NATO Maritime Group 1 shadowed the Russian spy ship Yantar and the Northern Fleet destroyer Severomorsk along the North Norwegian coast.

The Barents Observer – The Barents Observer was aboard the USS Gerald R. Ford on Wednesday as fighter jets took off for exercise bombing missions from the North Sea to the southern coast of Finland. The show of force follows a recent mission by the aircraft carrier to deter Russia inside the Arctic Circle.

War on the Rocks – NATO’s maritime readiness gap is not simply a matter of numbers but also a question of credibility. In an environment where adversaries are investing heavily in naval capabilities and contesting critical maritime domains, the alliance’s reliance on three overstretched national fleets is a vulnerability that could limit deterrence and operational reach. Without coordinated investment in shipbuilding capacity, workforce regeneration, and fleet modernization among some of its main players, NATO risks having a maritime strategy that outpaces the means to deliver it.

Defense Opinion – U.S. Navy warships are often more expensive than their foreign nation counterparts.

Defense News – U.S.-based Saildrone deployed a handful of unmanned surface vessels as part of NATO’s Task Force X demonstration in the Baltic Sea, which helped detect and track Russian shadow-fleet vessels operating in the area.

Naval News – NATO is conducting maritime uncrewed systems (MUS) experimentation in the Baltic Sea to demonstrate both the capacity to accelerate capability delivery and the importance of multi-domain operations (MDO) in building maritime situational awareness (MSA) to secure seabed infrastructure and sea lines of communication (SLOCs).

CIMSEC – To keep the U.S. engaged in the waters around Europe, European NATO members must find areas of common interest with the U.S. The threat of China to both European and American security interests creates many such opportunities. By monitoring China’s activities in the Arctic, becoming more active in the Indo-Pacific, and buying American, Europeans can maintain a strong military and industrial link to the U.S. even if U.S. military presence in and around Europe shrinks in the near future.

CIMSEC – A better understanding of expectations and goals in the Red Sea could generate premises to mend transatlantic fences. Presently, no one has the perfect recipe to bring this crisis to a halt, and a split approach has likely extended the crisis. Not only have the Houthis taken the lead in messaging victory, but the first true victim of this crisis – the Israeli port of Eilat – has fallen under financial pressure. Time has run out for the United States to complain about Europe without a plan. Likewise, time has proven that the European Union is still not a reliable security actor. An integrated NATO strategy that accounts for both US and European perspectives is the only choice for victory. The alternative option spells defeat.

WordPress – This article offers insights and recommendations based on our wargaming experience to help U.S. and NATO naval leaders strengthen operational integration, refine force employment, and better prepare for future maritime challenges in the Euro-Atlantic theater.

CIMSEC – NATO’s return to its core mission of deterrence and the defense of the Euro-Atlantic area has been made only more necessary by Russia’s continued aggressive actions both above and below the threshold of war. Ongoing restructuring of the operational components of the alliance is focusing on regional clusters of mutually supporting states. It is time for the maritime component to evolve in the same way the air and land components are. An SNMG-3 focused on the Baltic would not only allow SNMG-1 to concentrate on its core operational area in the North Atlantic, but it would also send a powerful signal of NATO’s intent to undermine and deter Russian malign actions in the region.

CIMSEC – In this era of increasing danger, great power competition, and uncertain loyalties, the time has come for the North Atlantic Treaty Organization to declare its independence. As at the time of its founding, NATO’s strategic adversary is Russia. But unlike during the Cold War, the Alliance can no longer count on the military and industrial might of the United States in confronting the threat.

NATO – Climate change can have a real impact on interstate rivalry and strategic competition, specifically by affecting water temperatures, currents and salinity, and thus sonar performance – a key asset in submarine and anti-submarine warfare.

CEPA – The prospect of reduced US naval and military support for Europe has raised alarm bells across the continent. In particular, European NATO now needs to think whether it alone can deter or defeat Russia.

Naval News – Commander Submarines NATO (COMSUBNATO) operates within Allied Maritime Command (MARCOM) based in Northwood, UK, and serves alongside peer commands NATO Maritime Air and NATO Surface Forces to form the operational backbone of NATO maritime activities.

Defense News – After NATO announced last month that it would beef up its naval presence in the Baltic Sea, Finnish media reported that the military alliance is expected to deploy up to 10 warships to protect undersea cables in the area against possible sabotage.

Center for Maritime Strategy – NATO must project power to continue to deter its great power adversaries. European maritime security will depend on NATO states’ ability and willingness to invest in the naval assets necessary to project power, such as aircraft carriers, submarines, and large surface combatants. The tension perceived by NATO defense planners between maritime and continental strategic priorities is an illusion. Decreased reliance on the United States can even be beneficial for the future of the alliance.

The War Zone – NATO’s yearly Steadfast Noon nuclear readiness drills coincided with Strike Warrior that featured a Royal Navy carrier group at its center.

Center for Maritime Strategy – Between Russia, China, Iran, and unforeseen challenges that may emerge, American carriers will be busy confronting threats for quite some time. The more America can depend on allies to complement its carrier power, the better placed it will be to handle these threats. Expanding carrier cooperation to more NATO members is one way to take fuller advantage of NATO’s strength at sea. 

CIMSEC – In short, the Red Sea crisis has reminded the world once again about the importance of maritime commercial connectivity for the global economy. It has, together with the ongoing naval war in the Black Sea, reminded NATO navies that the challenges of this “maritime century” will require bigger and stronger navies, capable of deploying together and addressing threats against them in a joint fashion, including in the highly contested littorals.

CEPA – Recent sinkings of Russian naval vessels by Ukrainian maritime drones are raising stark questions about tactics and competence.

The War Zone – Operation Aspides is a defensive task force created by the European Union to counter Houthi attacks on shipping.

War on the Rocks – A viable concept of littoral maneuver can help reduce the possibility of a growing spatial gap between fleets operating at reach with strategic capabilities such as cruise missiles and other elements of the joint force and ensure that both marines and maritime forces more broadly can contribute to a multidomain deep battle.

RUSI – The question that this paper seeks to answer is how Allied maritime power can best contribute to competition with Russia.

Breaking Defense – Western naval leaders gathered in Paris to present their priorities — and agree that recruiting and retention are among the chief challenges of the digital age.

Defense News – The balance between offense and defense in war swings back-and-forth, often depending on who has the best kit. But on the seabed’s battlefield, the aggressors are currently very much in charge.