ARRC Journal 2018 | Page 54

ARRC JOURNAL MARITIME SECURITY IN THE BALTICS Cdr John Payne (GBR-N) One year ago I was serving as the Commander of Sea Training, responsible for the coaching and mentoring of UK and NATO warships during their certification for national, EU and NATO operational tasking worldwide. Due to my involvement in the military maritime community I thought it opportune to highlight the significance of the maritime environment in the Baltic region. Those frigates and destroyers under my control a year ago included four Rota, Spain-based Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyers, the most recent of which was the USS Donald Cook (DDG- 75). Shortly after completion of training in April 2016, whilst supporting NATO operations in the Baltic, the Donald Cook was ‘buzzed’ by a Russian Su-24 aircraft flying simulated attack profiles down to 100 feet off her starboard quarter. Baltic Pass DC Fencer Three months later at the Warsaw Summit in July 2016, NATO’s enhanced Forward Presence (eFP) in the Baltic region was established. Since then, NATO Maritime Command (MARCOM) has been directed by the Supreme Allied Commander Europe (SACEUR) to scope how the eFP can be further developed to include a maritime dimension. The aim is to contribute to deterrence, linked with joint eFP activity and be prepared 54 ALLIED RAPID REACTION CORPS to defend against short-notice limited Russian conventional aggression from the Baltic Sea. miles and bordered by nine countries, at any time there are some 2,500 ships underway in the Baltic Sea. The complex nature of the region’s congested and shallow waters and high-volume of maritime transportation makes enhanced maritime situational awareness a complex challenge for NATO. The Danish Straits are one of the world’s eight major oil transit choke points and more energy passes through this chokepoint than the Suez Canal; on average 3.3 million barrels of hydrocarbon products each day. More than 125,000 ships transit the straits each year with more traffic exiting via the Kiel Canal. The volume of traffic in the region has doubled in the last 20 years and is expected to double again during the next decade. It is a main artery of economic activity for almost every country in the region, including Russia, with an estimated 40 percent of its The Baltic Sea Since Napoleonic times the Baltic Sea has been a critical area of competition. The unique environmental character of the constrained Baltic basin supports dense patterns of shipping and fishing activity. With an area of 160,000 square