NATO launches new US command for ‘battle of the Atlantic’ citing China, Russia

The US-led NATO military alliance has celebrated the official launch of Joint Force Command-Norfolk, the first such command to be located in the US, joining similar NATO commands in Brunssum, Netherlands and Naples, Italy.

"It's the mission of this command to fight the battle of the Atlantic in the event of armed conflict," said Chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley during a ceremony on board the USS Kearsarge warship. "Think about that. If you know your history, and you know World War II, you know how important that was."

"The survival of NATO, the success or failure in combat in a future war ... in Europe would largely depend on the success or failure of this command, and success or failure of the battle of the Atlantic," Milley further emphasized as quoted in a Friday report by the Military.com news outlet.

While insisting that the command is necessary to prevent a bloody, destructive war against major adversaries, he also underlined that if another war were to break out in Europe, securing the Atlantic would be crucial.

Warning of increased Russian and Chinese activity in the Atlantic, commander of US Navy's Second Fleet and the new joint force command Vice Adm. Andrew Lewis further stressed, "We can no longer assume we have control of the Atlantic, as we had at the end of the Cold War."

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"We are again being challenged by threats in these waters. [Russia and China] both have increased their presence in the Atlantic, from the Arctic Circle to the South Pole," Lewis added.

Lewis also explained that in peacetime, the command will provide situational awareness for the military alliance, lead and help prepare NATO planning, and take part in alliance’s war games such as Steadfast Defender, in which forces of the member states practice how they would collectively defend one another if attacked.

According to the report, as the US reduces its involvement in West Asia, the American military has sought to refocus its attention on preparing for a conflict with major rivals such as China and Russia, which it refers to as "great power competition."

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Milley further noted that the command reached initial operational capability, meaning it could do the minimum necessary, roughly 18 months ago.

The top US commander also claimed that the world could be entering a period of instability “with some nations, terrorist groups and rogue actors working to undermine systems of international cooperation and collective security that have existed since the end of World War II and its devastating violence,” according to the report.

"That's what this international order that's been in existence for seven and a half decades is designed to prevent. That's what JFC-Norfolk is all about. It's to prevent that outcome," Milley further claimed.

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