Steadfast Deterrence 24

STEADFAST DETERRENCE 2024 (STDC24) is a SHAPE sponsored exercise which will train NRDC-ITA as the ARF 3 Stars HQ.

STDC24 is the first iteration of the new Major Joint Exercise (MJX) series, and it is aimed at training Strategic and Operational level HQs – through Command Post/Computer Assisted Exercises (CPX/CAX) – while conducting peacetime vigilance activities and the Deterrence and Defence of the Euro-Atlantic Area (DDA) Family of Plans (FoP) against a peer adversary.

This will be the first opportunity to exercise aspects of DDA at the strategic/operational level using the new NATO Force Model (NFM), thus challenging the Alliance in peace and crisis. Finally, it will set the benchmark for future ARF HQ training and certification.

The exercise requires close adherence to the potential situation in case of a real activation and following deployment. This readiness during planning is meant to test the reaction of staff within time constraints. This will require excellent organization and coordination, especially as the personnel come from different backgrounds. Doing this will require using the standard procedures consolidated in over 20 years of NRDC-ITA HQ experience.

DIARY OF EVENTS

06 nov - 09 NOV 23	JOPG Leaders Workshop From 06 November 2023 to 09 November 2023, as part of essential preparations for the upcoming Exercise Steadfast Deterrence 2024, military staff personnel from across the NATO Rapid Deployable Corps Italy and affiliated units attended Joint Operations Planning Group (JOPG) Leaders Workshop at NATO's Joint Warfare Centre (JWC) in Stavanger (Norway). at Ugo Mara Barracks. The JWC's JOPG Leaders Workshop is a collective training event designed to address complexities in NATO'S Operational-level planning process, as well as organizational and procedural preparations of the staff.
14 nov - 16 NOV 23	Academics The three days of academics conducted at NRDC-ITA were very fruitful due to the large participation and support provided by SHAPE, JWC, ARF24 Components, and all the TCCs asked to contribute.It was a good venue to exchange knowledge and discuss several aspects of multidomain operations and possible scenarios of ARF employment. Leaders from NRDC-ITA and its affiliated units actively engaged in the Steadfast Deterrence 2024 academic sessions, laying the groundwork for a crucial training event focused on planning our next operational tasks. The event also emphasized organizational and procedural readiness for the staff involved in this NATO Exercise in preparation for the ARF mission. This inaugural Steadfast Deterrence 2024 gathering offers valuable direction and guidance to all participants in shaping operational plans.
20 nov - 14 dec 23	Planning Cycles Activities This phase ensures the adoption of a collaborative process involving the strategic, operational and tactical levels to develop effective planning and executable operational plans. Due to the lack of an OPLAN at Strategic level, the Crisis Response Planning (CRP) was anticipated by a Prudent Pre-planned Options (PPO) phase in order to set the conditions to conduct an Operational Adjustment of the Plan (OPAP) after the ACTORD and then to conduct the Joint Coordination Order (JCO) development.
26 FEB - 01 MAR 23	Battle Staff Training From 26 February to 1 March, as part of essential preparations for the upcoming STDC24, over 200 military personnel from across the NATO Rapid Deployable Corps Italy affiliated and subordinate units attended Battle Staff Training (BST) at Ugo Mara Barracks. This round of BST provided the opportunity for essential augmentees, liaison officers and enablers to fine-tune tactics, techniques, and procedures to prepare for the execution phase of the keystone exercise that starts. STDC24 is the main exercise of 2024 that will complete the NRDC-ITA process of preparation for the achievement of the combat readiness for the responsibility of the ARF 3 Stars HQ. These efforts are essential to confirm the Corps HQ capabilities in managing crisis situations, restoring security and stability, and responding to short notice operations. The five-day activity, mainly focused on training the Staff to familiarize with the execution procedures at operational level, represents another milestone that reaffirms the NRDC-ITA role as a training hub for NATO and Italian units.
15 APR - 24 APR 24	Operational Liaison Reconnaissance Team (OLRT) deployment in Romania From 15 to 24 April, a team composed by NRDC-ITA and its Support Brigade personnel, conducted the Eagle Overland 24 (EAOV24). This complex activity was carried throughout different European countries to test border crossing procedures. The Operational Liaison Reconnaissance Team (OLRT) moved on its vehicles across Slovenia and Hungary to reach as final destination Bucharest. Here, in cooperation with MND-SE, different activities were put in place to identify any potential gap in radio check. This exercise was a further example of the already ongoing collaboration with Romanian Allies in the context of simulations activities carried by NATO in the area.
21 may 24	STEADFAST DETERRENCE 2024 has begun STAVANGER, Norway - Major General Piotr Malinowski, Commander Joint Warfare Centre (JWC), announced the beginning of NATO Exercise STEADFAST DETERRENCE 2024 (STDC24) on Tuesday, May 21, 2024. Sponsored by Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe (SHAPE) and directed by the Joint Warfare Centre (JWC), STEADFAST DETERRENCE 2024 is non-Article 5 major joint exercise (MJX), designed to train and certify NATO Rapid Deployable Corps Italy (NRDC-ITA) as the first Allied Reaction Force (ARF) Headquarters, effective from July 2024.
31 may 24	STEADFAST DETERRENCE 2024 exercise concluded STAVANGER, Norway - The executive phase of the Steadfast Deterrence 24 Exercise, aimed at certifying the ability of the NRDC-ITA NATO Command to plan and apply NATO command and control procedures in the new Allied Reaction Force (ARF), configuration, capable of projecting itself very quickly into a potential crisis scenario. The ARF, reporting directly to SHAPE, is a central component of the new NATO Force Model which supports the concept of "Deterrence" and "Defense" of the Euro-Atlantic area (DDA) and was appropriately designed to be complementary to the NATO Regional Plans agreed by all Allies at the Vilnius summit.