Zapad 17:
Implications for NATO and the United States
Featuring:
H.E. Kristjan Prikk
Undersecretary for Defense Policy
Ministry of Defense of Estonia

Maj Gen Finn Kristian Hannestad
Defense Attaché
Embassy of Norway

Evelyn N. Farkas
Former Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Russia/Ukraine/Eurasia
US Department of Defense
Senior Fellow
Atlantic Council

Marko Mihkelson 
Chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee
Parliament of Estonia

Caroline Houck
Staff Correspondent
Defense One

Robert Nurick
Senior Fellow, Brent Scowcroft Center on International Security
Atlantic Council A Special Presentation by:

Graham Brookie
Deputy Director, Digital Forensic Research Lab
Atlantic Council 

Please join the Atlantic Council, in partnership with the Ministry of Defense of Estonia, for a public discussion on “Zapad 17: Implications for NATO and the United States” on Tuesday, July 11, 2017 from 9:00am to 11:00am at the Atlantic Council’s headquarters.

The summer of 2017 is seeing a nearly unprecedented level of military activity in Northern Europe. In response to Russia’s continued assertiveness NATO has stepped up its exercises in the Baltic Sea region, including with the bolstered maritime exercise BALTOPS and the recently completed Saber Strike in the Baltic States and Poland. Russia is expected to launch its own major exercise, Zapad 17, in mid-September that will test the readiness and capabilities of Russia’s air, sea, and ground forces in its western military district.

Zapad is a recurring exercise which has included forces from both Russia and Belarus, and serves as a high-profile training event close to NATO territory. Previous iterations of Zapad have, among other things, demonstrated the Russian armed forces’ ability to mobilize and rapidly move across strategic distances. Previous Zapad exercises have also included test firings of Iskander missiles, and the simulated use of nuclear weapons against targets in Allied territory.

In the lead up to Zapad 17, join us and distinguished security voices for an assessment of the significance of the coming exercise; what it might tell us about Russian strategic thinking, threat perception, and new operational concepts; and implications for regional security and the transatlantic community.  

The event will feature an exclusive open source evidence presentation by the Council’s Digital Forensics Lab on what to expect from one of the most important exercises this year.

On Twitter? Follow @ACScowcroft and use #ZapadWatch

Atlantic Council
1030 15th Street NW, 12th Floor (West Tower Elevator)
Washington, DC
20005

This event is open to press and on the record. 

VISITING THE COUNCILMetro and parking info 

On Twitter? Follow @ACScowcroft and use #ZapadWatch

Atlantic Council
1030 15th Street NW, 12th Floor (West Tower Elevator)
Washington, DC
20005

This event is open to press and on the record. 

VISITING THE COUNCIL: Metro and parking info