The United States and other NATO countries participated in an extensive military exercise in the Black Sea region entitled Exercise Sea Breeze 2021. The two-week long exercise is a joint, multi-national event with 5,000 personnel, 30 ships, and 40 aircraft from the U.S., Ukraine, NATO, and partner nations.

Sea Breeze 2021 took place during the June 28 to July 10, 2021 timeframe. It is an exercise that is helping to build capability and interoperability among NATO allies and partners. The Black Sea region has become more complicated in the past several years. Russia’s military presence has been expanding in the region, threatening Western strategic interests. This region is an important factor in protecting NATO’s eastern flank.

Photo: British Batch 2 River-class offshore patrol vessel HMS Trent (P224) participating in Exercise Sea Breeze in the Black Sea. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Claire DuBois, July 1, 2021)

The exercise is cohosted by the U.S. Sixth Fleet and the Ukrainian Navy. The first Sea Breeze exercise took place in 1997 and it has been conducted on an annual basis since then. This year’s exercise, with 31 countries participating, is focused on multiple warfare areas to include amphibious warfare, diving operations, maritime interdiction, anti-submarine warfare, search and rescue operations, land warfare, and special operations integration.

Naval vessels are engaged in the sea phase of the exercise, rehearsing coordinated air, maritime, and land operations to build combined capability. The ships and aircraft are working together in international waters and airspace to refine multi-domain operations. Since Russia’s invasion and illegal annexation of Crimea in 2014 the exercise has increased in size.

Participating countries include Albania, Australia, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Denmark, Egypt, Estonia, France, Georgia, Greece, Israel, Italy, Japan, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova, Morocco, Norway, Pakistan, Poland, Romania, Senegal, Spain, South Korea, Sweden, Tunisia, Turkey, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, and the United States.

Photo: U.S. Navy Special Warfare Operator salutes as he jumps out a U.S. Air Force CV-22B assigned to the 352d Special Operations Wing, while conducting military free fall training during exercise Sea Breeze 21 at Ochakiv, Ukraine, June 26, 2021. (U.S. Air Force photo by Army Staff Sgt. Brandon Nelson)

One of the events taking place during the exercise is the dive and salvage operation to remove a civilian vessel that sunk in 2016 and is now blocking a portion of the Odessa Port pier. U.S., Ukrainian, Canadian, Polish, and Georgian divers have worked on the project which will increase port access and maritime safety.

Elements of the 18 different special operations forces units and dive teams are involved in the exercise to include air, ground, and maritime units. The SOF units conducted training with international counterparts as well as maritime and airborne operations.

Photo: Special operations forces participating in Exercise Sea Breeze 2021 (photo by UK SOF)

Russia, NATO, and the Black Sea

The Black Sea region is a contested area and one that the Russians feel ‘belongs’ to them – the region being a traditional Russian sphere of influence. The Black Sea is important for Russian maritime traffic, commerce, and the projection of military power. Russian maritime dominance in the Black Sea allows it to bottle up Ukrainian ports and to solidify its illegal annexation of Crimea (2014).

The Russians view the exercise as a threatening event to Russian security. A disinformation campaign was launched by Russian to paint the picture that NATO ships entered the territorial waters of Crimea in a provocative manner. In addition, the Russians have conducted their own exercise in the area practicing missile and bombing strikes against target vessels. It has also been monitoring the exercise very closely, with Russian warships closely shadowing NATO warships.

In late June, Russia said it had a confrontation with the British destroyer HMS Defender in waters near Crimea. Moscow claimed that it dropped bombs and fired warning shots to force the warship out of its ‘exclusion zone’. Russian President Putin said that the incident was staged to test Russia’s response. The British discounted the Russian claims and passed the Russian reports as more disinformation. In addition, during the same timeframe, Russian planes conducted mock attacks against a Dutch navy frigate.

Russia intends to monitor NATO warships in the Black Sea and harass those that come near Crimea. In the past (2018) they have blocked the Kerch Strait, preventing maritime traffic from reaching the Sea of Azov – which provides access to the southeastern coast of Ukraine.

NATO warships routinely operate in the Black Sea on patrols for approximately two-thirds of the year. These voyages are consistent with international law. The Black Sea is a critical waterway for maritime commerce. NATO and the U.S. hold the belief that deterring Russian aggression and asserting NATO backing for Ukraine is important to deter future Russian aggression in the region and in Eastern Europe. The Sea Breeze 2021 exercise is a demonstration of U.S. and NATO commitment to security in this region.

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Top image from DVIDS, maps from CIA.

References:

Report – Russia, NATO, and Black Sea Security, RAND Corporation, 2020, PDF, 194 pages.
https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_reports/RRA357-1.html

Podcast – Eastern Approaches – the Maritime Dimension of the Russia-Ukraine Confrontation: A View from the Ukrainian Navy, The Jamestown Foundation, April 30, 2021, one hour. This video features retired Ukrainian Admiral Ihor Kabanenko who discusses the ongoing tensions between Russia and Ukraine as well as how the Ukrainian Navy will protect the Ukraine against the Russian Black Sea fleet.

The last several years the term Irregular Warfare (IW) has gained increased prominence within the national defense community. It has become a buzzword meaning different things to a variety of people and organizations. Irregular warfare consists of unconventional warfare (UW), counterinsurgency (COIN), counterterrorism (CT), foreign internal defense (FID), and stability operations (SO).

The U.S. recently published the Irregular Warfare Annex to the National Defense Strategy – which clarifies the role of IW within the Department of Defense and other government organizations. Since the IW annex has been published (Nov 2020) national security commentators have provided their perspective on what it means for the US defense establishment. Some of their more recent articles are provided below – with a brief synopsis of the article and link to the author’s article or publication.

Reimagining IW. A career Department of Defense civilian serving in the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Special Operations and Low-Intensity Conflict (ASD SO/LIC), Kevin Bilms, expresses his views on how “Irregular Warfare” needs a new market strategy that will eliminate some misconceptions and assist others in recognizing IW’s potential value in great power competition. Read “What’s in a Name? Reimagining Irregular Warfare Activities for Competition”, War on the Rocks, January 15, 2021.

From CT to IW? Jason Criss Howk notes that the U.S. is moving from a narrow focus on counterterrorism (CT) to a broader focus on irregular warfare (IW). He says that the shift to a larger view of IW and all the tools in the government tool box is also part of a natural evolution of how CT is conducted. “From Counterterrorism to Irregular Warfare: What Does That Mean?”, Clearance Jobs, January 15, 2021.

Critical Thinking in the Military. Steve Ferenzi, a strategic planning officer at the United States Army Special Operations Command (USASOC), shares his thoughts about red teaming and critical thinking in the military. He argues that “traditional American military culture diametrically opposes divergent thought.” For the US military to lead through influence and tools short of armed conflict it needs a tectonic cultural shift to harness the power of divergent thought. Read his article “The Death of Critical Thinking in the Military? Here’s How to Fix It”, Real Clear Defense, January 14, 2021.

IW and a Pentagon Bureaucracy Change. The introduction of great power competition has brought back (for some) the importance of irregular warfare (IW). The Defense Department has placed more emphasis on IW as part of a broader effort to counter Russia and China. Despite the emphasis on counterterrorism and counterinsurgency over the past two decades the US still has an overwhelming conventional force advantage with its near-peer adversaries. For that reason, Russia and others are using political warfare and irregular warfare to advance their strategic interests. It is time for the US to step up its IW game as well. The Pentagon has recently turned the Combating Terrorism Technical Support Office into the Irregular Warfare Technical Support Directorate. Read “A small bureaucratic change at the Pentagon hints at a major shift for US special-operations units”, Business Insider, January 11, 2021.

Dave Maxwell on IW, UW, PW, and CT. A retired Special Forces officer provides his perspective on the way forward when confronting Russia and China (as well as Iran and North Korea) in this new era of great power competition. He believes that SOF needs to focus on CT as well as on irregular warfare, unconventional warfare, and support to political warfare. He advocates some new principles both to frame special operations and communicate how the force supports the national strategy. “The Two Special Operations Trinities”, Small Wars Journal, January 6, 2021.

IW in Competition. Kevin Bilms states that “Irregular Warfare” is not a perfect term, but it helps to understand strategic competition short of an all-out war. He proposes that IW “. . . represents one way the military can apply its power complementarily with diplomatic, economic, financial and other elements of government power to secure strategic outcomes.” Read more in “Better Understanding irregular warfare in competition”, Military Times, January 1, 2021.

CA and IW. Three Army officers collaborate in an article on the role that Civil Affairs can play in bridging planning gaps and seams between convention and special operations forces in an irregular warfare environment. See “Building a Bridge: Cultivating an Irregular Warfare Mindset in the 83rd Civil Affairs Battalion”, Eunomia Journal, The Civil Affairs Association, December 28, 2020.

Podcast – Breaking the Boom-Bust Cycle of Irregular Warfare. David Maxwell (retired SF) and Deak Roh (of the ASD SO/LIC office) examine the IW Annex to the National Defense Strategy of 2018 and its relevance in an era defined by great power competition. Modern War Institute at West Point, December 18, 2020, 45 minutes.

Embracing IW. David H. Ucko, a professor at the National Defense University, believes that the release of the IW annex to the National Defense Strategy is insufficient to influence the reform and change needed to bring IW to the forefront within DoD and the US government at large. “Nobody Puts IW in an Annex: It’s Time to Embrace Irregular Warfare as a Strategic Priority“, Modern War Institute at West Point, October 14, 2020.

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Photo: A U.S. Army Special Forces Soldier assigned to 20th Special Forces Group and a Lithuanian National Defence Volunteer Forces (KASP) member conduct mission planning during exercise Saber Junction 2018 at the Joint Multinational Readiness Center in Hohenfels, Germany. The exercise provided the opportunity to conduct irregular warfare in enemy occupied territory. Photo by 1st Lt. Benjamin Haulenbeek, SOCEUR, Sep 16, 2018.

References:

Summary of the Irregular Warfare Annex to the National Defense Strategy, DoD, 2020
https://media.defense.gov/2020/Oct/02/2002510472/-1/-1/0/Irregular-Warfare-Annex-to-the-National-Defense-Strategy-Summary.PDF

Summary of the National Defense Strategy, DoD, 2018
https://dod.defense.gov/Portals/1/Documents/pubs/2018-National-Defense-Strategy-Summary.pdf

Special Forces and Irregular Warfare (IW)
https://specialforcestraining.info/topics/irregular-warfare.htm

“Book Review – The American Way of Irregular War”, SOF News, August 4, 2020. In this book LTG (Ret) Charles Cleveland provides an interesting look at the past 40 years of history of U.S. special operations. He provides recommendations for the restructuring of the U.S. special operations community and its approach to irregular warfare.
http://www.sof.news/publications/american-way-irregular-warfare/