What does it take to defend, fight and survive in an Arctic environment? What do you do if you fall through the ice while wearing 20 kilograms of military gear? Cold Response 2022 is a long-planned exercise bringing together thousands of troops from NATO Allies and partners, testing their ability to work together in cold weather conditions across Norway – on land, in the air and at sea.
The host country
Every year, NATO organises dozens of military exercises. NATO members also organise national exercises that include other Allies. Cold Response 2022 is organised by the Norwegian Armed Forces. Learn more about the exercise on their website.
Over the coming weeks, Allied and partner armed forces will trek across the vast wilderness, conduct live-fire drills, leap into freezing lakes, and much more. It’s all about training vital skills, making sure that our armed forces are prepared to respond to any threat or crisis – and keep our countries and people safe. Cold Response 2022 is bringing together Allies from Europe and North America, demonstrating the enduring transatlantic bond at the heart of NATO.
The basics
- WHO: Around 30,000 troops from over 25 countries from Europe and North America
- WHAT: Training together in cold weather exercises – on land, in the air and at sea
- WHERE: NATO Ally Norway and surrounding seas
- WHEN: March-April 2022
- WHY: Helping Allies and partners practise working together so that they are prepared for any situation
Cold Response 2022 is a long-planned and regular exercise, which Norway hosts biannually. This year’s exercise was announced over eight months ago. It is not linked to Russia’s unprovoked and unjustified invasion of Ukraine, which NATO is responding to with preventive, proportionate and non-escalatory measures.
Did you know? Norway was a founding member of NATO in 1949.
Why did Norway, a neutral country with close links to its neighbours, join an Atlantic alliance in 1949 instead of a Scandinavian union? How did Norwegians encourage greater cultural and economic cooperation among NATO Allies? And who was the “Breakfast Diplomat”? Find out on NATO Declassified!
Embrace the cold – NATO and winter operations
A US Marine leaps into the Flekkefjord Sea during a “polar bear plunge” charity event in Orkanger, Norway during exercise Trident Juncture 2018.
Allied forces need to be ready to operate in any environment under any conditions. Training in Norway allows NATO Allies and partners to practise their skills operating in extreme and rugged surroundings, from frozen fjords to shivering seas to ice-encrusted mountains. There’s a reason that Norway hosts the NATO Centre of Excellence for Cold Weather Operations!
But many other NATO Allies host exercises and help develop this expertise as well, from the bitterly cold Baltics to the remote volcanic beaches of Iceland to the Canadian High Arctic. Check out the videos below to see cold-weather troops in action.
From Arctic Express to Trident Juncture – a long legacy of exercises in Norway
Norway has hosted exercises with NATO Allies and partners since the early 1950s. From Anchor Express to Northern Express, Atlas Express to Winter Express, over the decades Norway has helped Allies and partners learn how to operate together in its rough northern terrain. Exercise Cold Response itself was first held in 2006. Click through the gallery to see archival images of soldiers during these exercises and the beautiful Norwegian countryside where they trained.
- A boat glides across a mirror-smooth lake during exercise Northern Express, June 1964. Northern Express brought together 7,000 troops from Belgium, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, the United Kingdom and the United States.
- With his bare hand, a (very brave, possibly foolish) soldier tries to pet an owl that has perched on some equipment during exercise Northern Express, June 1964. Status of the soldier’s hand unknown.
- Local children enjoy some candy from a soldier during exercise Northern Express, June 1964.
- Soldiers look out over a small village on a lake during exercise Northern Express, June 1964.
- Soldiers share a laugh and a small mirror as they shave during a quiet moment of exercise Northern Express, June 1964.
- Local Norwegian women with an umbrella walk past a group of UK soldiers during exercise Northern Express, June 1964.
- Soldiers march with skis over their shoulders during exercise Arctic Express, February-March 1970. Forces from Canada, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, the United Kingdom and the United States participated in the exercise.
- Local children play on top of a tank during exercise Atlas Express, March 1976. The exercise brought together 13,000 troops from Norway and other Allied countries.
- Soldiers in full winter battle gear take a break from training to buy chocolate and postcards in a local shop during exercise Atlas Express, March 1976.
- Soldier holding up sign stating, “This bridge has been blown up” during exercise Teamwork, September 1980. Exercises use simulated situations to train forces, so the comical sign actually provides valuable information to soldiers and commanders in the field.
- Soldier signals boat with flag during exercise Teamwork, September 1980.
- Two soldiers – bundled up with layers of clothing and wearing snowshoes – watch as dozens of other troops arrive by parachute over a frozen plain during exercise Alloy Express, March 1982.
- You know it’s cold when parts of your face start freezing! This soldier faces down the frost fearlessly during exercise Alloy Express, March 1982.
- Fish drying next to a lake during exercise Avalanche Express, March 1984.
- Horses haul wood on sleds during exercise Avalanche Express, March 1984.
- A child skies past armoured vehicles during exercise Avalanche Express, March 1984.
- Soldiers squat on skis, ready to spring into action, during exercise Avalanche Express, March 1984.
- Maritime detonation during exercise Anchor Express, March 1986.
- A soldier jumps out of a plane with a rescue dog during exercise Cold Response 2010, March 2010. Photo credit: Austrian Armed Forces.
- Vehicles parked under starry sky with aurora during exercise Cold Response 2016, March 2016. Photo credit: United States Marine Corps.
Why do we exercise?
Regular exercises allow NATO and partners to train together, identifying what works and what needs improving. Exercises are defensive, proportionate and announced months in advance. NATO Allies respect the transparency obligations under the OSCE Vienna Document, which governs the rules for military exercises in the Euro-Atlantic area.
Norwegian and US soldiers walking together during Exercise White Ulfbehrt in 2019 near Setermoen in northern Norway.
Under the Vienna Document transparency obligations, Norway has invited all OSCE member states to send observers to the exercise. The Chief of the Norwegian Joint Headquarters also informed the Commander of the Russian Northern Fleet about Cold Response 2022 in a video call in January 2022.
Learn why it’s important for NATO and partner forces to train together on land, at sea, in the air and in cyberspace.
What is it like to be a soldier on a NATO exercise? This video walks you through a day in the life.