BALTOPS 25 concludes in Kiel, Germany
23 June 2025
BALTIC SEA --
BALTIC SEA - Sixteen NATO Allies concluded the 54
th iteration of exercise Baltic Operations 2025 (BALTOPS 25), in Kiel, Germany, June 20, 2025.
The 20-day exercise, which included more than 40 ships, 25 aircraft, and approximately 9,000 personnel, was an opportunity for the NATO Alliance to train and demonstrate its warfighting capability, layered defense, and strength of its partnerships in the Baltic Region.
"Since 1972, NATO Allies have joined together in the Baltic Region to demonstrate our commitment to the maritime security of the Baltic Sea," said Vice Adm. J.T. Anderson, commander of U.S. 6th Fleet and Naval Striking and Support Forces NATO (STRIKFORNATO). "BALTOPS 25 has built upon that legacy, and validated a simple truth: the NATO Alliance, now in its eighth decade, remains as robust and relevant as ever."
This year’s exercise featured significant national and exercise-wide accomplishments, including the largest Special Operations Forces participation in the exercise’s history, and the first deck-landing of a Polish Special Operations Forces Mi-17 multi-role helicopter aboard a U.S. Navy ship; air defense exercises with a diverse range of aerial platforms, including a U.S. Navy P-8 Poseidon, Portuguese F-16 fighter jets, and Royal Air Force Typhoon fighter jets; and the construction of trench systems in Latvia by U.S. Navy Seabees, U.S. Marine Corps engineers, and Latvian Armed Forces, in response to lessons learned from modern warfare in the European theater.
BALTOPS 25 also demonstrated advances in asymmetric capability, with U.S. 6th Fleet’s Commander Task Force 66 (CTF 66) testing, evaluating, and training a variety of unmanned systems in the port of Ustka, Poland. Working in concert with the U.S. Navy command-and-control ship USS Mount Whitney, the guided-missile destroyer USS Paul Ignatius (DDG 117), and Royal Navy P2000 Patrol Vessels, CTF 66 tested the capabilities and endurance of three unmanned platforms, conducting maritime domain awareness target identification, contested logistics resupply, and simulated fast attack craft engagement using the autonomous systems. These simulations allowed the ships to practice and develop tactics, techniques, and procedures to defend against unmanned attacks in close coordination with Allied forces.
“Task Force 66 operates through strong collaboration with U.S. Navy programs, NATO Allies, and partner nations, fostering the development and integration of cutting-edge robotic and autonomous systems,” said Rear Adm. Michael Mattis, commander of Task Force 66. “By leveraging our collective expertise and technology, we aim to demonstrate strength and bolster maritime security not just here in the Baltic Sea, but in other maritime environments, to include the shores near the U.S. and in the Pacific Ocean.”
The exercise began with a pre-sail conference June 3 in Rostock, Germany, where exercise staff and senior leaders met to finalize the scenario and operations, and discuss the unique maritime challenges and opportunities of the Baltic Region.
June 5 marked the underway portion of the exercise, with warships from 16 NATO nations steaming through the Baltic Sea, followed by a rigorous week of tactical maneuvering drills, anti-submarine warfare training, gunnery events, personnel recovery training, and mass-casualty simulations incorporating a team of multi-national chaplains and spiritual counselors. Ashore, U.S. Marines deployed and live-fired High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS) in Latvia, Lithuania, and Poland, and simulated tactical attack capabilities with the Latvian Armed Forces.
The milestones and activities accomplished, both at-sea and ashore, were only possible through the Alliance’s connecting framework of STRIKFORNATO, headquartered in Oeiras, Portugal. In Oeiras, a multinational coalition of liaison officers and augmentees worked to ensure the free and effective flow of directives, intelligence and requests, bridging the gap between command levels, operational units, and supporting elements participating in exercise BALTOPS25.
“The Baltic Sea region is an area of significant strategic interest to the Alliance,” said Rear Adm. Craig Wood, CBE, Deputy Commander of STRIKFORNATO. “Exercises like BALTOPS are absolutely vital for ensuring NATO nations can integrate quickly and effectively to defend our Baltic Allies in times of crisis.”
Looking towards the future, preparations have already begun for next year's exercise, which will take into account the valuable lessons gleaned from BALTOPS 25 and aim to expand upon its achievements in BALTOPS 2026.
Participating nations included Belgium, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Sweden, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
STRIKFORNATO is a rapidly deployable and scalable headquarters, under the operational command of SACEUR, capable of planning and executing full spectrum joint maritime operations including maritime Ballistic Missile Defence, primarily through integration of U.S. and other nations' carrier and amphibious forces into NATO operations to provide assurance, deterrence, and collective defense for the Alliance.
Commander, U.S. Sixth Fleet, headquartered in Naples, Italy, conducts the full spectrum of joint and naval operations, often in concert with allies, international partners, and other U.S. government departments and agencies to advance U.S. national interests, security and stability in Europe and Africa.