NATO has opened a new airborne force center in Norway amid threats from Russia.
Newsweek writes that the center in Surreys in the north of the country will provide training for American, British and Dutch troops in amphibious operations. Norway does not have its own airborne force, but some of its main army and special forces units are based in the region.
Since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Norway has increased its investment in military installations, spending almost 16 billion kroner ($1.44 billion) on bases in the Troms region alone.
Sørreisa is located near the Reisfjord and has a population of approximately 3.5 thousand people. The local airport is the base for the Joint Air Transactions Center (JAOC) and the Command and Reporting Center (CRC), the report said.
The center opened against the backdrop of hybrid threats from Moscow. Last month, for example, the Russian vessel Yantar was spotted near critical Norwegian maritime infrastructure, such as oil and gas pipelines, as well as Internet and telecommunications cables, which countries have warned could be targets of sabotage attacks.
The local coast guard said the fact that the Russian vessel chose to sail with its AIS transponder indicated it was a “deliberate act aimed at drawing attention to its presence.”
The Eastern bloc of the alliance blames Russia for other hybrid attacks, such as GPS jamming in the Baltic region that affected airline operations, as well as fueling the migration crisis on the border with Finland.
Source: Racurs
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