Nearly 1500 soldiers, including over 600 military and civilian experts from 27 member states of the North Atlantic Alliance, participated in the LOYAL LEDA 2025 exercise at the NATO Joint Forces Training Center in Bydgoszcz. On March 4-13, soldiers of NATO’s Headquarters Multinational Corps Southeast and NATO Rapid Deployable Corps-Türkiye tested their readiness for the collective defense of the Alliance, informs JFTC spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Bogumiła Szynak
The LOYAL LEDA 2025 exercise, which has been carefully planned and prepared over the past 18 months, has focused on activities in the terrestrial environment. The unit responsible for organizing the exercise was the Allied Land Command, while the task of conducting it was entrusted to the NATO Training Center in Bydgoszcz.
The exercise took place in a realistic, multi-domain, intensively changing environment, covering political, military, economic, social, information and critical infrastructure areas, based on NATO defence plans.
The participants faced demanding tasks provided by response cells, responsible for individual areas. The challenges provided by the unit exercising as an adversary (the so-called OPFOR – Opposing Force) covered all operational domains – land, air, sea, space and cyber.
Thanks to this scenario of the exercise, the participants were able to verify the applicable procedures, their knowledge and skills, as well as eliminate shortcomings, as a result confirming their operational readiness to perform the tasks entrusted to them.
Author. JFTC
Together, we have faced countless challenges that have tested the ability of the exercising commands to make decisions under pressure,” emphasized Brigadier General Petr Svoboda, deputy commander of the JFTC, during the closing ceremony of the exercise. ”
Through your efforts, we have strengthened our ties and reaffirmed that we are prepared to respond to any crisis that may arise.
Brigadier General Petr Svoboda, Deputy Commander of the JFTC
The exercise was carried out under the watchful eye of Lieutenant General Jez Bennett, Deputy Commander of the Allied Land Command, Major General Bogdan Rycerski, Commander of the NATO Joint Force Training Centre in Bydgoszcz and at the same time the director of the exercise, as well as Lieutenant General (res.) Leonardo di Marco, Senior Advisor for the exercise. However, full success would not have been possible without staff involved at all levels of operations.
From the teams providing logistical support to the advisors, you all played a key role in ensuring that the objectives of our exercise were achieved. (…) However, it is not only about training goals. If you take with you ‘open chapters’, unsolved problems that will force you to look for answers and better solutions, it means that we have achieved the right result, we have improved our defense plans
Brigadier General Petr Svoboda, Deputy Commander of the JFTC
Exercises such as LOYAL LEDA 2025 provide an opportunity to share knowledge and experience in the field of training and exercises. The day for observers of the exercise, organized at the JFTC, was an excellent opportunity for such interactions.
Senior military officials, including Lieutenant General Athanasios Garinis, Commander of the NATO Rapid Deployable Corps-Greece, and Lieutenant General Iulian Berdila, Deputy Chief of the General Staff of Romania, who visited the JFTC, had the opportunity to observe the exercise at its climax. In the second week of intensive training, General Rycerski met with the trainees of NATO’s Headquarters Multinational Corps Southeast in Sibiu, Romania. Such interactions are crucial for the further development of allied training and exercises.
Author. JFTC
LOYAL LEDA 2025 confirmed the Alliance’s ability to respond effectively to today’s security challenges and underlined NATO’s role as a cornerstone of global security and stability.