DISINFO: NATO military exercise BALTOPS is anti-Russian
SUMMARY
BALTOPS exercise is held annually by NATO. Previously, Russia took part in exercises. Everything changed after the Ukrainian crisis in 2014. Moscow stopped participating in manoeuvres. And the very nature of the exercises became emphasized as anti-Russian. No one doubts that they are directed against Russia. NATO is increasingly justifying the holding of costly exercises by the need to combat the alleged “Russian threat.” Although Moscow has stated many times that it is not going to attack the West.
RESPONSE
Recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative about NATO threatening or encircling Russia and the military exercise "Baltops 2020". NATO is a defensive alliance, whose purpose is to protect its member states. NATO exercises are not directed against Russia – or any other country. BALTOPS is the largest exercise series in the Baltic Sea. Participating troops come from Canada, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Turkey, the UK, and the United States. “BALTOPS provides the opportunity for NATO and partner nations to operate together, sharing best practices to improve real-world operations," said U.S. Vice Admiral Lisa Franchetti, commander, Naval Striking and Support Forces NATO and commander, U.S. 6th Fleet. NATO has reached out to Russia consistently, transparently and publicly over the past 29 years: "NATO set out to build a good relationship with Russia. We worked together on issues ranging from counter-narcotics and counter-terrorism to submarine rescue and civil emergency planning. However, in March 2014, in response to Russia's aggressive actions against Ukraine, NATO suspended practical cooperation with Russia." As reaffirmed by NATO leaders at the Brussels Summit in July 2018, "NATO does not seek confrontation and poses no threat to Russia." See other examples of disinformation about NATO in our database, such as its never-ending provocations, its attempts to block Moscow in its sphere of influence, the Alliance's permanent targeting of Russia and Belarus, its role as a US subjugation tool for other countries and its unreliability to defend its members or its plans to continue attacking other countries.