It is NATO’s largest annual computer-assisted command post exercise. It trains collective defense under Article 5 at the operational and higher tactical levels.
Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe scheduled the exercise, which is directed by the Joint Warfare Centre. The training covers the Allied Command Operations warfighting system, including SHAPE, three joint force commands, seven domain component commands and the Allied Reaction Force.
All 32 allies support the exercise. NATO Headquarters, U.S. European Command and international and partner organizations also support it.
“Our readiness remains a top priority,” said Maj. Gen. Ruprecht von Butler, commander of the Joint Warfare Centre. “STEADFAST DUEL 2026 is NATO’s premier exercise to test our defence plans, readiness and interoperability in a theatre of strategic competition.”
“It provides a great opportunity to exercise the entirety of NATO’s Deterrence and Defence of the Euro-Atlantic Area family of plans,” von Butler said. “We take great pride in contributing to the readiness of the ACO warfighting system and strengthening NATO’s collective readiness in this unique, highly complex region.”
Steadfast Duel tests multinational command-and-control structures across land, air, maritime, space and cyberspace. Its simulated battlespace operates around the clock, combining immediate readiness with future warfighting concepts.
Training includes large-scale combat, defensive cyber operations and electronic warfare. It also covers chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear protection, civil-military cooperation, and the movement of troops and supplies.
The exercise is linked with U.S. Army Europe and Africa’s Avenger Triad 2026. That event tests how U.S. and allied headquarters fight together at and above the corps level.
Headquarters Supreme Allied Commander Transformation will conduct experiments under the Audacious Training framework. The work includes multi-domain operations, cognitive warfare and escalation dynamics.
The Joint Warfare Centre will also support a medical capability experiment with SHAPE counterparts. National hackathon teams from Belgium, Canada and the Netherlands will participate.
The center will advance its NATO Maven Smart System capabilities through the AI in Audacious Training Initiative. Col. Kevin Rafferty, its deputy chief of staff for operations, said AI-enabled platforms improve the speed and proficiency of large-scale exercises.
“The tempo of transformation requires the JWC to plan and execute exercises quicker,” Rafferty said. “Training the ACO warfighting system has resulted in a massive increase in the scope and scale of the exercises directed by the JWC.”
“The preparation for exercises had to be adapted to the new ‘campaign approach to exercises,’ which means that the exercise planners had significantly less time to plan than before,” said Lt. Col. Stefan, the lead planner for Steadfast Duel. “Combined with the all-in approach, which now encompasses active involvement of all the nations as well as the whole of ACO turned out to be a very challenging but rewarding endeavour.”
Source: NATO’s Joint Warfare Centre.
