The title is courtesy of the Transylvania Now new site. The Pentagon’s Special Operations Command Europe kicked off the Trojan Footprint 21 exercise on May 3; what is identified as its premier special operations forces drills.
The war games will be held until May 14 in five Black Sea and Balkans nations: Bulgaria, Georgia, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Romania. Special forces from the U.S. – all branches of the armed forces including Green Berets – the five host nations, Britain, Germany, Spain and Ukraine are involved. With the exception of Turkey, all Black Sea littoral states but Russia are participating.
The exercise is designed for “enhancing interoperability between NATO allies” to prepare for “counter[ing] myriad threats.” Though there aren’t a thousand, only one, threat. Russia.
Just as it is all-service so it is “all-domain” with air, land and sea forces engaged in combating an unnamed adversary in the Black Sea. One which has a fleet based in Sevastopol in Crimea.
Trojan Footprint 21 is occurring simultaneously with the massive DEFENDER-Europe 21 war games in the same area and ahead of the Steadfast Defender exercise, also to be held in the Black Sea region.
Rick Rozoff is a contributing editor at Antiwar.com. He has been involved in anti-war and anti-interventionist work in various capacities for forty years. He lives in Chicago, Illinois. He is the manager of Stop NATO. This originally appeared at Anti-Bellum.
Wasn’t it just last week that Washington was condemning Russia for doing this in their territory?
Yes………….in THEIR territory. Thank you for saying that. It is necessary.
Crimea is NOT russia’s territory … and the Black Sea blockade they are attempting should be broken
I believe he was talking about our bitching about “Russian aggression” because they were positioning its military on THEIR side of the border with Ukraine and not Crimea.
Crimea is Russian territory… moron. If you don’t think it is try visiting there and see who greets you at the border
With their population totally distracted and contained, western governments are relentlessly pushing for wars that could totally destroy humanity. Voltaire–“Common sense is not so common.”
This is about a rebirth of NATO, encirclement of Russia, and the absorption of Ukraine into EU and NATO.
Because gas is a major export product of Russia, its sale and transport is independent of ice-free ports.
The next attack of reborn NATO will be on Nordstream 2.
And the West European countries will be flooded with cigarette-smoking riotous Ukrainian fascists. They deserve it.
It all goes back to a pipeline. Oil. Gas.
You are right about gas.
But there is SO MUCH MORE to the gas story.
US is trying to prevent Nord Stream, to cut German dependence in Russian gas. US forever blocked any southern access to Europe for gas originating in Russia. It is all about Russia being bad? And how is Europe going to get gas to get rid of coal, substitute oil and nuclear in their industry?
Here lies the answer to US strategy. US is promoting gas from Israel’s Leviathan gas field in East Mediterranean. US is calling it East Med gas — but it is chiefly for Israeli gas and a fig leaf of Cyprus gas. US has included in the lobby group Egypt as potential customer, but it is another fig leaf of support. Egypt is buying some Israeli gas to appease US, but is going to profit from influence in Libya and less beholden to Israeli new exploration. Greece is a debtor nation that would host the pipeline landing. And other weak states along Balkan route would have to ditch Russian gas via Turk Stream. To be sure, Israeli presence has been inserted heavily into states along the way — particularly Russia supporting Serbia.
Who is mostly to suffer should Israeli pipeline materializes. Russia, of course. But it can sell to Asia with no problems.
Most damage will be done to Turkey that has been positioning itself as energy hub. Already from Russia and Azerbaijan, but anticipating eventually Qatar and Iraq gas in the future as Syria stabilizes,
Because of the threat, Turkey moved aggressively to block pipeline. Deal with Libyan recognized government in Tripoli on the rights to Mediterranean shelf is effectively blocking pipeline. Biden’s full court press on Turkey —- currency attack, and political designation of Armenian genocide, are tools of pressure. That is in addition to military hardware that has bern sanctioned and production of F-35 motors in Turkey cancelled.
Will Turkey relent? If it capitulates, Iran, Iraq i Qatar would become dependent on Israeli infrastructure for any sale to Europe.
There is a chance for a settlement— but not this early in Biden administration. What is transpiring though is building bridges between presumed enemies, Qatar, Saudis, Iran, Turkey , Egypt. Lateral ties, infrastructure. It will be hard for Israel and US to isolate, Turkey, Iran, Russia and China.
thank you Bianca , excellent analysis
Some show of strength. More like messaging. Look who is there — Bulgaria , Romania, Georgia, North Macedonia and Montenegro. The last two — countries that hate NATO, who were taken into the organization through our control of their politicians and through utterly treasonous legal violations. Their presence in Black Sea is militarily insignificant (their armies number less people then a typical
American high school has students, But the presence there — to challenge Russia — is to rub it in faces of population that do not approve,
But another message is forming with Biden administration. The message easier to peddle. Those Balkan countries – Orthodox Christians, still harbor animosity towards Ottoman era occupation. Biden’s dog whistle to this sentiment (Armenian genocide, calling Istanbul Constantinople) may improve NATO standing there. These are primitive devices — but they often work, For Russia and Turkey one more reason for sticking together,
Cute names for those “exercises”. Especially liked naming the latest after a condom, “Trojan footprint 21”. For REALLY special operations we could have the “Ribbed, for her pleasure, Trojan footprint 21”.