Haitian migrants wait to be processed by Bahamian immigration authorities after the Royal Bahamas Defence Force interdicted their vessel in March 2024. ROYAL BAHAMAS DEFENCE FORCE THE WATCH STAFF The Royal Bahamas Defence Force (RBDF) recently apprehended another Haitian vessel fleeing turmoil in Haiti and carrying more than 100 men, women and children, bringing the number of Haitians apprehended by the RBDF to 369 in March 2024. The interdictions followed RBDF Commander Commodore E. Raymond King’s announcement of a blockade of the country’s southern islands in response to the continued upheaval in nearby Haiti. The violence and economic devastation after…
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Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen speaks during a news conference about strengthening the country’s Armed Forces by making conscription mandatory for women. THE ASSOCIATED PRESS THE WATCH STAFF Denmark has become the third NATO member to propose drafting women into the military as part of their national service obligation, joining Norway and Sweden in the gender-equity effort. Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen announced the policy change, which also includes lengthening the mandatory military service from four to 11 months as threats to the international rules-based order have deepened since Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine. “We do not rearm because we…
A ski-equipped U.S. Air Force LC-130 lands in Greenland. Greenland’s government released a 10-year foreign policy statement in February 2024 outlining its diplomatic objectives. U.S. AIR FORCE THE WATCH STAFF The government of Greenland has released its foreign policy for the coming decade, stressing its close alliance with Denmark, NATO and the United States. The government wants to maintain the international rules-based order in the Arctic and urges greater representation of Indigenous people. The 48-page document, “Greenland’s Foreign, Security and Defense Policy 2024-2033 — an Arctic Strategy,” was released in February 2024 by Greenland’s Department for Statehood and Foreign Affairs.…
The Coast Guard Cutter Healy participates in an Arctic survey to map the continental shelf. Vice Adm. Peter W. Gautier said the Coast Guard will welcome up to six new icebreakers to the fleet in the coming years. U.S. COAST GUARD THE WATCH STAFF A U.S. Coast Guard vice admiral said his branch’s long history in the Arctic is entering a new phase as a changing climate and emerging threats have increased the emphasis on polar security in the region. Vice Adm. Peter W. Gautier, the Coast Guard’s deputy commandant for operations, is responsible for the development of operational strategy,…
Soldiers from the Danish Schleswig Infantry Regiment take part in a military exercise at the Oksboel Shooting and Training Ground, in Jutland, Denmark, in March 2023. A historic defense agreement, which was partially ratified by the Danish Parliament in January 2024, invests in the recruitment and retention of new personnel. AFP/GETTY IMAGAES MAYA JOHNSON Denmark continued its historic investment in national defense by approving the first part of a 10-year spending agreement that will bolster the nation’s military forces through 2033. Spearheaded by the Danish Ministry of Defence, the $22.5 billion agreement is seen as a proactive response to the…
Norway has ordered 52 of the U.S.-made advanced F-35 fighters and is scheduled to receive them all by 2025. NORWEGIAN ARMED FORCES THE WATCH The Royal Norwegian Air Force has integrated its command-and-control units into a Joint Air Operations Center (JAOC) with the goal of greater efficiency as well as interoperability with allies. The JAOC, which will be based in Sørreisa, merges the National Air Operations Center, Special Operations Air Task Group (SOATG) and 131 Air Wing, according to a January 5, 2024, story in the Norwegian newspaper High North News. The 131 Air Wing, which is responsible for the…
The Watch Staff Swedish leaders want citizens to seriously prepare for the possibility of Russian aggression, with the government currently assessing how to best inform the public of the threats, which have heightened after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine nearly two years ago. Gen. Micael Bydèn, Sweden’s top military commander, and Carl-Oskar Bohlin, the minister for civil defense, speaking at security conference in January, each warned that Sweden must be prepared for the worst. “Let me say it with the power of office” and “with unadorned clarity: There could be war in Sweden,” Mr. Bohlin said, according to The New York…
The United State Department of Defense’s Replicator initiative calls for the development of scalable, autonomous weapons systems that will counter the Chinese Communist Party’s munitions buildup. ISTOCK UNITED STATES STRATEGIC COMMAND The United States Department of Defense (DOD) is working with international and industry partners to develop scalable, autonomous weapons systems aimed at countering the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) munitions buildup. Announced by Deputy Defense Secretary Kathleen Hicks in August 2023, the Replicator initiative will streamline and accelerate delivery of innovative technology. “Replicator is meant to help us overcome the PRC’s [People’s Republic of China] biggest advantage, which is mass,”…
U.S. Marines with the 1st Battalion, 2nd Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division conduct a troop movement during cold weather training in preparation for Nordic Response 2024 in Setermoen, Norway. LANCE CPL. JOSHUA KUMAKAW/2ND MARINE EXPEDITIONARY FORCE THE WATCH STAFF NATO allies trained together in frigid Arctic climes as members honed their interoperability during exercise Nordic Response, which ran March 3-14, 2024, in northern Finland, Norway and Sweden. The exercise was designed to acclimate troops and equipment to Arctic conditions. Formerly known as Cold Response, Nordic Response is a NATO training event conducted every two years with the U.S. Marine Corps…
The Arctic Council, shown here in 2021, has mostly halted cooperative work after the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022. That action has sparked growing military and political cohesion in Scandinavia. AFP/GETTY IMAGES THE WATCH STAFF The Russian invasion of Ukraine has strengthened NATO resolve and integration in many ways, but perhaps the most significant has been an emerging unified Nordic military strategy to deter Russia, especially in the Arctic. In the last two years, Denmark, Finland and Sweden have all signed defense agreements with the U.S., and Norway expanded its previous arrangement, opening dozens of military bases and facilities…