NATO Adopts New Air Power Strategy to Be Ready for Possible Contingencies

BRUSSELS (Sputnik) - NATO unveiled on Tuesday its new Joint Air Power (JAP) strategy allowing the allied air forces to be more flexible to defend themselves against peer competitors and any contingencies with a focus on the growing role of cyber and space-based assets.

The new strategy envisages “a balanced and innovative approach” to JAP to provide a coherent military capacity, enhancing the development of a credible and flexible NATO posture.

“For the first time since the end of the Cold War, the Alliance has to be able to conduct operations against any peer-state actor. As a result, the future operating environment may be one in which air superiority can neither be assured at the onset of operations nor, once obtained, be an enduring condition,” the document says.

In this regard, the strategy stresses the growing critical importance of cyber and space-based capabilities of the allied forces.

“Increasing reliance on cyber and space-based capabilities by Alliance forces presents vulnerabilities for adversaries to negate critical NATO capabilities through degradation, denial or destruction, whilst providing opportunities for the Alliance to integrate such capabilities with JAP for kinetic and non-kinetic effect. Both the resilience and exploitation of such capabilities is therefore a critical requirement that future development should address,” the strategy stipulates.

READ MORE: NATO to Deploy More Troops in E Europe to Confront 'Russian Threat' — Reports

Earlier in the day, NATO began its annual Ramstein Alloy drills. The manoeuvres include air policing exercises, in the airspace of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. The drills are expected to last two days.

In recent years, NATO has been building up its military presence in Eastern Europe and the Baltic States saying it is protecting them against an alleged so-called "Russian aggression."