US Deploy 20,000 Soldiers to Europe DEFENDER Europe 20 Largest military exercise in Europe since Cold - The Department of the Army announced today the largest U.S.-based Army exercise of forces to Europe in the last 25 years, since the Cold War.
The exercise, called DEFENDER-Europe 20, will increase strategic readiness and interoperability by exercising the U.S. military’s ability to rapidly move a large combat force of soldiers and equipment from the continental United States to Europe, and, alongside allies and partners, quickly respond to a potential crisis.
The U.S. Army Europe-led, joint, multinational training exercise is scheduled in the spring of 2020 and supports objectives defined by NATO to build readiness within the alliance and deter potential adversaries.
“DEFENDER-Europe 20 is a great opportunity to demonstrate the US Army’s un-matched ability to rapidly project forces across the globe while operating alongside our allies and partners in multiple contested domains,” said Lt. Gen. Charles Flynn, the US Army Deputy Chief of Staff G-3/5/7.
Approximately 37,000 U.S., allied, and partner nation service members are expected to participate, with roughly 20,000 Soldiers deploying from the U.S.
The publication Defense News reported Monday that the division-scaled exercise will test the Army’s ability to deliver a force from “fort in the United States to port in the United States,” and then to ports in Europe, and from there to operational areas throughout Europe from Germany to Poland to the Baltic states and other Eastern European nations, Nordic countries and even Georgia.