By Kong Gang
孔 刚
In late June, NATO concluded its largest-ever air military exercise Air Defender 2023. Since the first participating fighter jet took off from a northern German airport on June 12, more than 10,000 troops and over 250 military aircraft of various types from NATO and its partner countries have taken part in the exercise. Despite the numerous exercises NATO has carried out in Europe in recent years, there are some important points to note.
6月下旬，北约结束号称其史上最大规模空中军事演习——“空中卫士-2023”。自6月12日首架参演战机从德国北部某机场起飞后，北约及其伙伴国1万余名军人、250余架各型军机参演。尽管近年来北约在欧洲举行的演习数不胜数，但此次演习还是有些重要看点值得关注。
First, the exercise was unprecedented for the NATO air force as the most likely first service to enter the battlefield. NATO has always been highly concerned about the cooperative combat ability of allied air forces. The 25 participating nations include NATO members, Sweden, which is still seeking to join NATO, and Japan in East Asia. More than 250 participating military aircraft of 23 different types covered almost all types of air force aircraft. In terms of geographical scope, although most exercises are concentrated in three areas of Germany's airspace and the adjacent North Sea and Baltic Sea, this exercise can be closely linked with two other NATO military exercises in Estonia and Romania through specially designed air corridors. Coupled with the use of airports in the Netherlands and the Czech Republic, this exercise covered most of Europe's airspace from the Atlantic Ocean to the Black Sea and the Baltic Sea.
首先，这场演习对于北约空中力量而言是空前的。作为极有可能最先投入战场的军种，北约对各盟国空军的协同作战能力始终高度关注。此次演习参演国多达25个，除北约成员国，还包括尚在争取加入北约的瑞典和远在东亚的日本。250余架参演军机包含23个不同类型，几乎囊括空军所有机种。演习地理范围方面，虽然大部分演练集中在德国空域3个地区以及临近的北海与波罗的海上空，但通过专门设定的空中走廊，这场军演能够同分别在爱沙尼亚和罗马尼亚进行的另外两场北约军演密切联动。加上对荷兰与捷克相关机场的使用，此次演习覆盖了从大西洋到黑海、波罗的海的欧洲大部分空域。
Second, the military exercise has a clear background and strong targets. According to NATO officials, the exercise is aimed at testing the ability of NATO member air forces to fulfill Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty, which states that they collectively defend their territorial airspace. NATO countries rehearsed scenarios in which a hypothetical enemy seized the Klebius region of eastern Germany and NATO air forces reacted quickly as local conflict continued in Europe. In this context, there are more than 200 daily drill missions, including aerial combat, coordinated movement between different countries and aircraft types, air support to ground strikes, rescue and special missions. Besides, NATO countries have also exercised courses such as electronic countermeasures. NATO's intent to deter Russia is quite obvious.
其次，这次军演背景明确、目标针对性强。据北约官方透露，演习旨在检验北约成员国空军履行《北大西洋公约》第5条款，即集体保卫成员国领土领空的能力。在欧洲局部冲突持续的情况下，北约各国演练了假想敌攻占德国东部（虚构的）克莱比乌斯地区，北约空军迅速作出反应等场景。在此背景下，每日演练任务高达200余个，其中包括空中格斗，不同国家、不同机型间的协同调动，空中支援对地打击，救援以及特种任务等。此外，北约各国还演练了电子对抗等课目。不难看出，北约威慑俄罗斯的意图相当明显。
Third, this military exercise reflects certain changes in NATO's internal and external dynamics in recent years. It is not a coincidence that the coordination of the exercise was entrusted to Germany's military command, which highlights Germany's increasing status within NATO. Relying on its strong national strength, Germany has an increasing say in NATO and European security-related affairs. In recent years, Germany has proposed the NATO's framework nations concept and constructing a unified air defense and anti-missile system with a number of countries. It has taken more important steps in the field of defense construction following the escalation of local conflicts in Europe in 2022. All of these are pushing Germany to the center of Western military architecture, and the US is happy to see it happen for its own strategic reasons. Local conflicts in Europe also strengthen US control over European security.
再次，此次军演从一个侧面反映了北约近年内外格局的某些变化。演习委托德国军方指挥部门统一协调并非偶然，凸显了德国近年来在北约内部地位的提升。依托强大国力，德国对北约以及欧洲安全相关事务的话语权不断增加。近年来，德国相继提出北约“框架国”概念，联合多国构建统一防空反导体系。2022年欧洲局部冲突升级后，德国在防务建设领域迈出更多重要步伐。凡此都在将德国推向西方军事架构的舞台中心，美国出于自身战略考量也乐见其成。欧洲局部冲突也强化了美国对欧洲安全的控制。
Fourth, it is worth mentioning Japan, the only non-Euro-Atlantic country in the exercise. Though small in scale, Japan's participation reveals its ambition. NATO is also discussing matters related to the opening of a liaison office in Japan as an important step to strengthen relations with Japan, despite questions and objections from member countries such as France. Japan's participation in the NATO exercise is a clear attempt to intervene in European security matters that have nothing to do with it and to promote NATO's involvement in East Asian affairs. It can be said that the exercise arrangement has a negative impact on international security, which cannot be disguised by all the positive rhetoric of NATO officials.
最后，值得一提的是，日本作为仅有的非欧洲-大西洋地区国家参演，虽然规模不大，暴露的心机却很深。作为与日本加强关系的重要一步，北约也在讨论在日本开设联络办事处相关事宜，其中不乏法国等成员国的质疑与反对声。日本参加北约演习，介入与己无关的欧洲安全事务，推动北约卷入东亚事务的图谋十分明显。可以说，此次演习安排设计释放了对国际安全的负面影响与消极因素，这也是北约官方种种正面说辞掩饰不了的。
(The author is from the College of International Studies, National University of Defense Technology.)
（作者单位：国防科技大学国际关系学院）
