It has been reported that the US military will be holding a war game, with hundreds of its personnel from across the globe taking part. In the war game, the enemies will all be fictional characters, however, it is said that the games are meant to prepare the troops for a possible military conflict with China and Russia.
Several US defense officials stated that the game has been classified as “top priority” for Mark Miley, who is the chairman of the joint Chiefs of Staff. Miley has been tasked with leading the exercise, and he is to brief US defense secretary Lloyd Austin, as events unfold.
The war game is specifically designed to prepare the US military’s top commanders to tackle any form of fictional global crisis escalating on several fronts. The players would have to contend with varying scenarios, and compete for military assets like bombers, aircraft, and other military weapons. This is coming just months into Joe Biden’s presidency.
As it stands, the US military budget is being put in place, and major decisions regarding troops are being made. They are hopeful that this exercise will assist the US military in preparing for the expected challenges the next few years may bring. War games are extremely sensitive, and each outcome is kept as top secret. This is because the US military wouldn’t want foreign enemies to know their shortcomings.
In the game, many possible scenarios will be covered. These include cyber hacking, a Russian advance in the Baltics, militarization of the Arctic by Moscow, China’s activities in the South China Sea, and even an invasion of Taiwan. Besides virtual preparations, the US and Canada have been carrying out several military exercises in rugged and almost unpredictable conditions.
Here, the temperatures can get as bad as -20°F, and this is an ideal training ground if they were to go against the Russian military advances in the Arctic.
Russia has already installed advanced missiles in the region to guard its bases. This is seen as a direct challenge to America.
In 2020, several Russian aircrafts were seen flying very close to the US airspace off Alaska. These include bombers, intelligence collection planes, and anti-submarine aircrafts.
NORAD, which is the US and Canadian command supervising the exercise, says – “Being able to track and then defeat” potential Russian military activity in the Arctic is a top priority”.
