The meeting focused on regional threats and the cooperation between the IDF and NATO.

By TPS

The chairman of the military committee of the NATO alliance, Admiral Rob Bauer of the Royal Netherlands Navy, visited Israel last week as the official guest of the IDF Chief of Staff Lieutenant General Herzi Halevi.

The Admiral met with the Chief of Staff and participated in security, intelligence and strategic panels, which dealt with threats to the region and the significant cooperation between the IDF and NATO.

Also participating were the head of the Strategy and Third Circuit Division, the head of the Operations Division, the head of the Space Division, the head of the Research Division in the Intelligence Division and other senior officials.

“The strategic partnership between the IDF and NATO is a basis for regional stability in the Middle East. The significant cooperation leads to many operational successes,” Halevi said.

“The cooperation between NATO and the State of Israel has a direct effect on regional stability in Europe and the Middle East; in the last year the cooperation has been increasing,” said Admiral Bauer. “Together, we will succeed in overcoming many security challenges.”

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Five countries are participating in the annual “Noble Dina” drill; Russia held drills in the same area last month.

By Batya Jerenberg, World Israel News

Israel is currently leading its annual naval exercise in the Mediterranean with forces from four NATO countries in an area where Russia drilled just before it invaded Ukraine last month.

Called “Noble Dina,” the multi-national force expanded from its original Greek, American and Israeli participants to include Cyprus and France. In past iterations, the five-day drills held with helicopters, ships and submarines have practiced areas as search-and-rescue, port defense and maritime security.

Israel’s participation in this year’s exercise was thrown into doubt as Jerusalem is trying to maintain a low profile during the war in Ukraine. Practicing naval and air tactics with countries from the European alliance could anger Russia, although NATO has made clear that it would not directly intervene in the fight, since Ukraine is not one of its members.

However, NATO countries support Ukraine unequivocally, having already taken in millions of refugees and supplying Kviv with arms, medical aid and financial support over the course of the almost-monthlong war.

As a major non-NATO ally that has developed close ties to Russia — due to its influence in Syria and the huge number of Russian Jews (close to one million) who have immigrated to the Jewish state — Israel is treading a careful line, trying not to anger either side.

After careful consideration, IDF chief of staff Lt. Gen. Aviv Kochavi decided to go ahead with the exercises, Israel Hayom reported Monday. The IDF announced that some of the Navy’s Squadron 3 missile boats are participating in the five-day event, as is a submarine and other forces, together with “missile boats, airplanes and helicopters of the parallel navies.”

Anti-submarine tactics, simulated battles between ships and search-and-rescue operations are all part of the military agenda, which will end this weekend.

The IDF considers these drills of the utmost importance, as the forces gain useful insights in tactics and strategy from each other while strengthening the level of international military cooperation in an area quite close to the Jewish state.

Perhaps one of Kochavi’s considerations was that Russia held military exercises in the same eastern Mediterranean Sea Basin, right before its invasion of Ukraine. In mid-February, a cruiser, frigate and destroyer from its Northern Fleet drilled together with nuclear-capable bombers and fighter jets that had flown in especially for the exercise from Russia to the country’s air base in Syria.

According to the Military Times, it marked “the biggest Russian naval deployment to the Mediterranean Sea since the Cold War.”

Former Israeli Ambassador to Russia and Ukraine Zvi Magen told JNS at the time that this training “could form a challenge for NATO’s underbelly” and create “a new front against the West in the Middle East.”

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While Israel is not a member of NATO, it is classified as a major non-NATO ally and is often involved in exercises in the region.

By Tobias Siegal, World Israel News

In a joint effort to prepare for a possible military confrontation with Iran, the Israeli Air Force (IAF) will hold a widescale drill with the U.S., Italy and Britain this week.

The drill will take place in Italy and will include the IAF’s newly purchased F-35 Adir fighter jets, making it the first time the stealth jets are deployed in a foreign country and used in a foreign environment.

היום (א’) מתחילה הפריסה הראשונה של מערך האדיר לחו”ל – תרגיל “הכתר החמישי” באיטליה! בתרגיל ישתתפו חיל-האוויר הישראלי, האיטלקי, האמריקאי והבריטי. pic.twitter.com/jwgWXOYDdu

— Israeli Air Force (@IAFsite) June 6, 2021

IAF fighter pilots will train alongside Italian, American and British pilots in one of the largest exercises of this kind to take place in recent years. According to a senior IAF official cited by Kan News, the drill will develop cooperation between the forces related to target identification and logistics, such as aerial refuelling and providing support to ground forces.

The main objectives of the exercise were defined as strengthening military collaboration and preparing for a possible armed conflict with Iran in the near future. Other goals include improving the deployment capabilities of the F-35 fighter jets in unfamiliar territory.

This exercise is the first of its kind to include such a comprehensive collaborative effort between Israel and three member states of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).

While Israel is not a member of NATO, it is classified as a major non-NATO ally and is often involved in NATO exercises in the region.

In 2018, Israel participated in a NATO annual drill for the first time, as tensions rose between Moscow and NATO. The IDF sent dozens of combat soldiers from its Paratroopers Brigade to participate in the drill, which took place in eastern Europe.

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A group of 40 Israeli paratroopers joined Europeans and Americans for the first time in the multi-national Saber Strike NATO exercise in Poland, where IDF Maj. Amir Pori discussed the significance of the opportunity to parachute over Polish soil on the 70th anniversary of the Jewish state.

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