The enhanced Vigilance Activity is led by Naval Striking and Support Forces NATO, headquartered in Oeiras, Portugal. NATO said Neptune Strike demonstrates collective defence, interoperability and year-round readiness.
Unlike a single annual exercise, Neptune Strike is carried out in multiple iterations during the year. Each iteration has a specific operational focus and allows NATO to rehearse command and control with multinational forces already deployed across Europe.
Earlier Neptune Strike activities focused on the Western and Central Mediterranean and integrated operations across five maritime regions. The flexible format allows NATO to adjust each iteration to changing operational requirements and available deployed forces.
Neptune Strike 26-3 is the first iteration to expand into the High North and North Atlantic. It forms part of Arctic Sentry, a NATO enhanced Vigilance Activity led by Joint Force Command Norfolk.
The activity will include the United Kingdom’s Carrier Strike Group, led by HMS Prince of Wales, operating alongside the Spanish Expeditionary Strike Group, led by “Castilla”. They will be supported by 12 contributing Allied nations.
Ships, submarines and aircraft from Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Greece, Iceland, Italy, Norway, Poland, Spain, Sweden, the United Kingdom and the United States will take part, together with the NATO Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance Force. NATO said the activity shows the Alliance’s ability to integrate forces across domains and headquarters.
The Arctic, High North and North Atlantic present vast, austere and complex operating conditions. NATO said training there helps Allied forces refine procedures, integrate multinational capabilities and adapt to a changing security environment.
Neptune Strike also complements other enhanced Vigilance Activities, including Baltic Sentry, Arctic Sentry and Eastern Sentry. Together, these activities are intended to sustain an Allied presence across multiple regions and strengthen NATO’s deterrence and defence posture.
The activity will also test command relationships, intelligence sharing and cross-domain coordination over large geographic distances. NATO said the wider effort supports freedom of navigation and freedom of manoeuvre while demonstrating the Alliance’s ability to respond rapidly to emerging challenges.
