NATO’s Exercise “Steadfast Defender 2021” kicks off in May 2021, bringing together more than 20 NATO Allies and partners from North America and Europe1.
- Steadfast Defender 2021 is the first large-scale test of NATO’s adapted Command Structure, with the involvement of two new NATO commands – Joint Support and Enabling Command based in Ulm, Germany and Joint Force Command Norfolk, based in the United States.
- According to the NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, “Exercise Steadfast Defender 2021 will test NATO’s readiness and military mobility – with forces deploying across land and sea, all the way from North America to the Black Sea region and off the coast of Portugal.”
About NATO
- Formed in 1949 with the signing of the Washington Treaty, NATO is a security alliance of 30 countries from North America and Europe.
- NATO’s fundamental goal is to safeguard the Allies’ freedom and security by political and military means.
- NATO membership is open to “any other European state in a position to further the principles of this Treaty and to contribute to the security of the North Atlantic area.
