In The Event Of A Russian Invasion, This Is NATO’s First Response (VJTF)

continuing to look at lithuania’s defense situation I think it’s time to look at NATO’s vjtf or very high Readiness Joint Task Force it’s very hard in this Joint Task Force NATO’s spearhead Force designed to react to a crisis situation absur not at the moment British units are assigned to the vjtf and so there’s very little direct Lithuanian involvement in the force however since it’s this force that would be among the first to come to this country’s support in the event of an invasion it’s something worth looking at on this Lithuania themed YouTube channel and one last note before jumping into things just a little reminder that I’ve set up a completely different YouTube channel to host videos covering lighter topics of Lithuanian life I thought separating the heavy military and geopolitical stuff from the more day-to-day cultural stuff was the best thing to do okay moving on like most of the special units and alliances that we’ve discussed in previous videos the vjtf is the result of the actions of Russian forces in this case the very high Readiness Joint Task Force vjtf was set up in 2014 as a quote unquote spearhead Force within the NATO response force or NRF as explained by the UK’s Ministry of Defense the vjtf was created after Russia’s illegal annexation of Crimea in 2014 and it deployed for the first time for the collective defense of the alliance after Russia’s full-fledged invasion of Ukraine in 202 22 the idea behind the vjtf is to have an international task force of 5,000 troops ready to deploy within a few days in a crisis situation such as an invasion of a NATO member State a NATO web page says that vjtf includes a multinational land Brigade of about 5,000 to 6,000 troops and air Maritime and special operation Force components and so in the event of any attack on a NATO Ally leading elements of the vjtf are ready to move within 48 to 72 hours the vjtf and initial followon forces are based in their home countries but are able to deploy wherever they are needed for exercises crisis response or Collective defense according to Nato leadership of the vjtf rotates on an annual basis with one Ally designated as the lead country and other allies participating and so what is the status of the vjtf right now well I’m making this video between May and June 2024 this means that it’s the United Kingdom leading and supplying the core forces to the vjtf this role was assumed on January 1st 2024 and will last the whole year the previous year 2023 it was Germany assigned as the lead vjtf Nation or more specifically the bundes faar’s 37 armored infantry Brigade the year before that in 2022 a Franco German Brigade of 3500 troops along with contributions from Spain Portugal and Poland for the UK this year it’s the seventh light mechanized Brigade aade combat team nicknamed The Desert Rats and these will be the core for the 2024 vjtf I’ll list all of the brigades subunits here but I won’t read them all out so you can pause this video if you want to look at them all joining British troops are Poland’s first Warsaw armored Brigade and Spain’s brigada Guzman El Bueno both of these units will provide heavy battle tanks attack helicopters and air defenses in total nine NATO allies are providing forces for vjtf 2024 the first major exercise for the 2024 vjtf was exercise St fast defender in February NATO’s largest set of military Maneuvers since the height of the Cold War it seems like a major exercise is conducted around the first few months of each calendar year and I guess this is a way to make sure that all the vjtf subunits and countries know how to properly deploy and work with each other watching videos of various previous vjtf exercises it’s clear that Logistics is super important in getting so many soldiers and pieces of equipment to the area of operations well I guess as Major General John persing said soldiers win battles Logistics win Wars British travel in groups of 20 Vehicles known as packets and must work with both civilian and Military authorities in all three countries to ensure that the movement is as smooth and quick as possible like the British the Polish have had to overcome logistical challenges to deploy their armored vehicles and heavy equipment by rail over 4 days to arrive on time in Romania commenting on his unit’s capabilities Brigadier General guy foden commander of the seventh light mechanized Brigade combat team said with a significant quantity of main battle tanks Attack Helicopters infantry artillery air defense drone capability engineers and Logistics the Brigade is a formidable fighting machine it is the most powerful Brigade I have seen in my 25 years in the Army like I said Lithuania currently isn’t part of the vjtf now it has contributed troops to the NRF in the past according to its defense Ministry Lithuania has been contributing to the NRF since 2005 in 2019 2020 Lithuania was contributing a company-sized infantry unit and in 2021 Lithuania sent as many as 200 military and civilian personnel and increased this to about 300 the following year with Lithuania being on the Eastern flank of NATO territory there’s I guess a higher probability the vjtf would be deployed to this part of the world well compared to let’s say Spain as a result Lithuania has created infrastructure that would accommodate the vjtf in such a scenario on September 7th 2023 the general sylvestro zukus training ground in pabade was presented to the media the Lithuanian government wanted to show off the infrastructure development project which was set up to meet the needs of the vjtf as reported by Maiden vness the construction works are aimed at creating the infrastructure needed to host the vjtf and quote ensure the right conditions for a faster more efficient and more convenient deployment of allies in Lithuania after completing this project it’s claimed that the zukus training ground will become one of the most modern in the Baltic states and will be able to accommodate 2 and a half th000 soldiers there have also been amendments to Lithuanian laws to create conditions for the quick arrival of allies the deadline for permits to enter Lithuania for military units and cargo is 3 to 5 working days and in the event of a threat NATO rapid response forces can enter Lithuania within 24 hours a total of 13 structures are part of the project and include Barracks canteen training and Recreation areas storage technical repair buildings helipads dog kennels as well as the construction of military campus roads and Engineering networks construction is expected to be completed by the end of 2025 the project is financed by NATO and the ministry of National Defense of Lithuania so what’s my take on all this well I think one of the key talking points within the Russian troll Playbook is to always cast doubt and uncertainty regarding a NATO response should anything happen to Lithuania they also tend to highlight how lithuania’s military is Tiny compared to Russian forces well they’re certainly right on the last point but the more I look into the structures set up to deter Russia the clear the it is to me that there certainly is a plan for NATO forces to respond swiftly whether it’s an invasion of the Baltic Nations Finland Sweden Poland or Romania but I think the big question for me with regards to the vjtf is for an enemy Invasion how much progress or damage would there be in 48 hours while the vjtf is on its way well I’m no military strategist so I’m pretty reluctant to try and answer that but I suppose the vjtf would be deployed before the actual Invasion because if we saw Russian or Bell Russian units moving towards Anam massing near the border like we did with Ukraine I’m pretty sure NATO forces like the vjtf would already be planning their moves and getting ready for what comes next is an invasion actually going to happen because remember Russia denies that it has any plans to invade um it’s America and and its allies that are saying you know there are indications that this is going to happen and if you’re not going to invade then maybe you should explain to us why you’ve got 100,000 troops along the border but what do you think of the idea of the vjtf as a response unit let me know what you think by leaving a comment if you enjoy this Channel and want to support me in making more videos please consider becoming a patreon patron there’s a link down in the description for you to check out thanks so much for watching

Like MOST of the special units and alliances that we’ve discussed in previous videos, the VJTF is the result of the actions of Russian forces. In this case, the Very High Readiness Joint Task Force (VJTF) was setup in 2014 as a “spearhead force” within NATO’s NRF – or NATO Response force. As explained by the UK’s ministry of Defence, the VJTF was created after Russia’s illegal annexation of Crimea in 2014 and it deployed for the first time for the collective defence of the Alliance after Russia’s full-fledged invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
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Information sources:
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/uk-takes-lead-of-nato-rapid-response-force
https://www.army.mod.uk/news-and-events/news/2024/01/desert-rats-leading-nato-s-first-line-of-defence-in-2024/
https://www.janes.com/defence-news/news-detail/uk-light-mechanised-brigade-to-lead-nato-vjtf
https://www.army.mod.uk/news-and-events/news/2024/02/british-army-sets-sail-to-europe-for-exercise-steadfast-defender/
https://www.bundeswehr.de/en/organization/army/mission/vjtf-2023
https://www.nato.int/cps/en/natohq/news_210076.htm
https://kam.lt/en/lithuania-to-continue-force-contributions-to-multinational-rapid-response-forces-nato-and-eu-headquarters/
https://www.nato.int/cps/en/natolive/topics_49755.htm
https://madeinvilnius.lt/en/news/Lithuanian-news/presented-how-nato%27s-ultra-high-readiness-rapid-response-training-ground-will-look-like-in-Prabrada/

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21 comments

  3. Units like the VJTF, NRF in general along with NRI, are Key to any kind of credible NATO deterrence and defence of the Eastern flank. Not only is it important for NATO to have a reaction force on the continent. But its also important, that as many members as possible, have units committed, at any given time.
    While VJTF's 5K soldiers doesn't sound like much in the event of an evasion by Russia. They will, together with the NATO and local forces already stationed on a given front, most likely be used as a tripwire, while conducting a fighting retreat.

    If the invasion is a surprize, and this hasn't happened already.
    After the initial phase, they will be reinforced by NRF's remaining 35K and NRI's 80K soldiers.
    Along with, what ever individual NATO Countries deside to "mobilise" and send when ready.

    By having many different countries already committing, and likely loosing troops. Said countries are more likely to honor article 5, by mobilising more units and other kinds of support immediately.

    While these units luckily haven't been needed to defend against an invasion yet. As I recall parts have been deployed to the Eastern flank, as a deterrence, and have been used in other ways, within their mission parameters. But above that, they have been instrumental in improving NATO's interoperability, and finding areas for NATO standardisation. As well as improving capabilities of member nations militaries. Because of the high emphasis on joint training and readiness, before and during the time, a unit is part of a given reaction force.

    Anecdotally: when I was part of NRF. That was the year, that I earned the most money in my 11 years as a soldier. Because I was constantly on exercise all over Europe. I earned more then any of my combat tours, but only because tours only lasted 6 months, as opposed to 12months in NRF.

  7. I live in Germany at time , 1988 , it was good to know there are many Nation's US , F , GB , NL , BEL and many more who protect us for things like Ukraine . I think we should work togheter protekt each from the evil . Sorry for the style of writing & english using !

  9. We may argue that NATO wasn't prepared back in 2022 to prevent Russia's invasion (which was a big fail, considering it wasn't the first coup). In the meantime, we should know better, and the Baltics and Poland are full NATO members, so there are no excuses for messing this up (again). No one can tell me, we aren't able to welcome a Russian invasion force with a devastating ballistic firewall the moment they cross the border or shoot the first shot. The same applies to the Suroviki gap. There is not one single scenario in Russia's favor if we do our homework, are prepared, and willing to act promptly and determined.

  13. It's a start…. 10000 in 24hr is not enough yet. If it gets to 25000 in 24hr and 50000 in 48hr. You would have effective deterrence. But logistics is a b*tch we would need to fastly invest in capabilities and infrastructure. But this is really promising.

  16. I think in case of Russian troops garison near border NATO would start unplanned exercises. There will be no need for fast response or article five.

  18. Do people in Lithuania? For example, the Ukrainians want to use f-16 but most of them can't speak English. How can America help European countries if a large portion of their country can't speak English? that's a serious problem, especially with aviation. and I always love to see how the logistics work and I'm not surprised they use rail to transport tanks and other vehicles. my recommendation is that the air force of any nato country learn English immediately if they want to fly fighter jets.

  20. so during war the vjtf would live in that one building? then what happens after it gets bombed with artillery? cause it will be a major target, which probably will be hit

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