In the months ahead of Russia’s joint military exercises with Belarus this autumn — the largest such exercise in years — NATO has deployed units throughout the Baltics and Eastern Europe, and Lithuania has gone so far as to call for a permanent US troop presence there.
Now, in what appears to be a first among Western militaries, Norway is publicly discussing ways to counter Moscow’s latest advancement in armored warfare.
Oslo plans to spend $23.7 million to $41.5 million between 2017 and 2025 to replace its Javelin anti-tank guided weapon systems in an effort to “maintain the capacity to fight against heavy armored vehicles,” according to a document from the Norwegian Ministry of Defense.
Norway’s focus on anti-armor abilities is probably a response to Russia’s investment in active-protection systems for its tanks and armored vehicles, according to retired Brig. Ben Barry, senior fellow for land warfare at the International Institute for Strategic Studies.
APS systems use radar to detect anti-tank and anti-armor weapons, deploying countermeasures to destroy or disrupt them.
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Featured image courtesy of AP
