It was the second military exercise on Ukrainian soil within a few weeks. Just a few days after the multinational maneuver “Sea Breeze” ended in the Black Sea (Military News reported), “Three Swords 2021” began – an exercise by the LITPOLUKRBRIG brigade, which is made up of units from the Lithuanian, Polish and Ukrainian armed forces. The exercise took place from July 17 to 30 near the International Peace and Security Center in the Ukrainian city of Yavoriv in the Lviv Oblast. US soldiers were present as observers.
The aim of the exercise was to test the capabilities of military units during a joint defense mission, improve their interoperability, enable an exchange of knowledge and experience and prepare them for changes in the global security environment. In the long term, this should strengthen military cooperation and trust between the participating countries. The possibility of deploying the brigade in future military operations in an international environment is also envisaged.
Not much is known about the exercise. According to the LITPOLUKRBRIG website, the details of the planning and the results of the scenarios played out were not published. All that is known is that more than 1,200 military personnel and 200 combat vehicles were involved, that the “full spectrum of military capabilities” was used and that the exercise was based on a modified OCCASUS scenario. The setting of the OCCASUS scenario is as follows: A fictitious adversary increases its military presence in the neighborhood of the territory of the participating states and attacks one of the states using hybrid warfare means. This scenario is also played out as part of NATO maneuvers, such as “Trident Juncture”, “Trident Jupiter” or “Defender Europe”. It goes without saying that the fictitious enemy is Russia.
The approximately 4,000-strong LITPOLUKRBRIG is based in Lublin, Poland. The brigade is made up of an international staff, three battalions and special units. The three participating countries each provide an infantry battalion as well as the special units and personnel for the headquarters in Poland. The maneuver battalions consist of the Lithuanian Grand Duchess Birute Uhlan Battalion, the Polish Rifle Battalion 5 Podhale and the Ukrainian 1st Air Assault Battalion of the 80th Airborne Brigade. There will also be a number of combat support and logistics units. The costs are shared by all participating countries, with Poland making the largest contribution as host. The leadership changes on a rotational basis. The idea to form the brigade was born back in 2007 at a meeting of the Lithuanian, Polish and Ukrainian defense ministers. However, several years passed before it was implemented. The idea only gained momentum following Russia’s annexation of Crimea and the outbreak of conflict in eastern Ukraine. In June 2014, an agreement to establish the brigade was finally signed by the defense ministers of the three countries; it was formed in 2015. The naming of the LITPOLUKRBRIG after the Grand Hetman of Lithuania Konstantin Ostroschski, who as leader of the Polish-Lithuanian armed forces in the 16th century was victorious in battles against the Crimean Tatars and the Grand Duchy of Moscow, lends it symbolic power.
The joint exercises, which have been carried out as part of the trilateral brigade since 2019, are particularly important to Kiev, especially as Ukraine’s NATO membership appears less and less realistic (Military News reported). For this reason, strengthening military cooperation with individual members of the alliance is a high priority for the Ukrainian leadership, but also for Poland and Lithuania in view of their geographical proximity to Ukraine. The importance of LITPOLUKRBRIG for Ukraine also results from the fact that the brigade is involved in numerous international military maneuvers. Since 2015, for example, it has been taking part in NATO’s Rapid Trident Manoeuvre under the leadership of the US Army, as well as in the Maple Arch training exercise organized by Canada every year to train NATO partners. Another example is the “Agile Spirit” manoeuvre organized by the Georgian, US and other allied forces and held in Georgia. In addition, LITPOLUKRBRIG has been involved in training Ukrainian armed forces as part of the Joint Multinational Training Group – Ukraine (JMTG-U) – a US-led multinational task force – since 2019.
