'Great power competition': Nato announces Atlantic command to counter Russia

Amid rising tensions with Russia, the Pentagon has announced the official launch of a new naval command and the reactivation of the US Second Fleet to bolster the US and Nato presence in the Atlantic Ocean.

“The return to great power competition and a resurgent Russia demands that Nato refocus on the Atlantic to ensure dedicated reinforcement of the continent and demonstrate a capable and credible deterrence effect,” said Johnny Michael, a Pentagon spokesman. He said the new Nato command “will be the linchpin of trans-Atlantic security”.

The decision reflects escalating worries across Europe and within Nato over Russia’s increased military presence and patrols in the Atlantic region. Under the new plan, the US will set up Nato’s new Atlantic Command headquarters in Norfolk, Virginia.

... Nato also created a new logistics command, which is expected to be located in Germany.

I believe I said Leopard II, not the 2A4 version - of which there are only a handful in existence, not enough to do more than make a brief showing in a major conflict before being overwhelmed and destroyed.

And those tank shows are just that a show (with most of the performance depending on the particular crew in the tank) with no bearing on combat survivability or effectiveness in an actual conflict.

If those shows reflected the real world, then everybody would be driving T-14 Armatas. But they are not, oddly.

Will Europe pay us to reactivate the Second Fleet?

Will it pay its fair share for the Atlantic Command?

Russia is the least of Europe’s problems. The continent will done in by its divisions long before Russia invades it.

And the return to the Cold War mentality Washington wants is not welcomed in Europe.

Talk about totally stupid.

You put your command and control center well away from potential threats. That makes the “brain” safe.

But what about its logistics? Put that center where the Russians can get at it very easily. Remember the Soviet sponsored marches and near riots from the 1980’s?

Let me assure you, you can not fight sustained combat with the basic load wither it is on your back or in a ship’s magazine. Also, all of your pre-war planning factors are OUT TO LUNCH - see combat operations for the 17 years.

Guess the NATO idiots didn’t learn anything from France’s Force de Frappe from the early 1960s. Such an independent force is too expensive for a single nation state - too many vote buying schemes go non funded.

Undoubtedly, the manner in which the Turkish Army employed the German tanks likely contributed to the losses. Rather than using them in a combined arms force alongside mutually supporting infantry, they were deployed to the rear as long-range fire-support weapons while Turkish-allied Syrian militias stiffened with Turkish special forces led the assaults. Isolated on exposed firing positions without adequate nearby infantry to form a good defensive perimeter, the Turkish Leopards were vulnerable to ambushes. The same poor tactics have led to the loss of numerous Saudi Abrams tanks in Yemen, as you can see in this video.
By contrast, more modern Leopard 2s have seen quite a bit of action in Afghanistan combating Taliban insurgents in the service of the Canadian 2A6Ms (with enhanced protection against mines and even floating “safety seats”) and Danish 2A5s. Though a few were damaged by mines, all were put back into service, though a Danish Leopard 2 crew member was mortally injured by an IED attack in 2008. In return, the tanks were praised by field commanders for their mobility and providing accurate and timely fire support during major combat operations in southern Afghanistan.
In 2017, Germany began rebuilding its tank fleet, building an even beefier Leopard 2A7V model more likely to survive in a counterinsurgency environment. Now Ankara is pressing Berlin to upgrade the defense on its Leopard 2 tanks, especially as the domestically produced Altay tank has been repeatedly delayed.

http://nationalinterest.org/blog/the-buzz/germanys-leopard-2-tank-was-considered-one-the-best-until-it-24234?page=2

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