Nato has launched a new multinational force based around the Black Sea as it looks to check the growing Russian presence in the region following the annexation of Crimea in 2014.
Based in Romania, the force will initially be made up of around 4,000 troops from 10 Nato counties including Italy, Canada, Germany and the US. British personnel are not expected to be included but the RAF is deploying fighter planes to patrol Romanian airspace alongside Canadian aircraft.
The news comes as Russia winds down its biggest war games in five years, named Zapad (meaning ‘West’), which showed off its latest weaponry and the country's ability to quickly deploy soldiers on Nato’s borders.
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Addressing the Nato Parliamentary Assembly in Bucharest yesterday, Romanian President Klaus Iohannis stressed the purpose of the new force is “peace, not war”, adding: “We are not a threat for Russia. But we need dialogue from a strong position of defence and discouragement.”
Reuters claims the Nato force “aims to develop its allied presence in the Black Sea region, rich in oil and gas, without escalating tensions, as it seeks to counter Russia’s own plans to create what military analysts say is a ‘buffer zone’”.
Russia has repeatedly accused the alliance of trying to encircle it and threaten stability in Eastern Europe, especially after Nato expanded to include former Soviet satellite states such as Romania and Bulgaria.
During an inspection of troops yesterday, Nato Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said the new force “sends a signal of Nato’s resolve”, adding that Nato also has a 40,000-strong response force in case of a conflict with Russia.
