NATO carries out chemical and nuclear defense maneuvers, what is it about?

Some 600 NATO troops will participate from this Saturday until September 29 in the “Toxic Trip” exercise (“Toxic Journey”, in English), which will take place at the Belgian air base of Koksije (west) and which tests the defense of the Atlantic Alliance against chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear attacks.

Forces from 18 countries will participate in these “large-scale” maneuvers, including allies such as Spain and partners such as Austria and South Korea, indicated the Belgian Ministry of Defense in a statement reported in the newspaper “Le Soir”.

Sweden, a future ally awaiting ratification by Hungary and Turkey to become a full member of NATO, will also participate.

The objective of “Toxic Trip” is to put into practice and harmonize passive defense techniques and procedures in “realistic scenarios” in the face of these four types of threats in the country hosting the exercise and, by extension, throughout the territory of NATO. .

The idea is that, in the event of a real threat anywhere in the world, action and cooperation can be “even better and faster,” according to the Belgian ministry. The capabilities that will be tested include the evacuation and decontamination of personnel and equipment, vehicles and aircraft in particular.

The Belgian ministry points out that, in recent years, chemical or biological agents have been used against military and civilian personnel, and that they consider that this type of threat is likely to increase in the future.

EFE