The 6th Fleet of the United States Passed Near Latvia: Admirals Briefly Mentioned Russia 0 17

EU Trade Artery

One of the main goals of the BALTOPS exercises is stated to be the implementation of freedom of navigation in our region. 15% of global cargo traffic passes through the Baltic Sea today. It has 200 ports. Throughout the month, between 3,500 and 5,500 vessels measure their routes, with 2,000 vessels of various sizes and types – from fishing trawlers to passenger superliners – present in the Baltic at any given moment.

The Baltic region houses 24 out of 92 ports belonging to the Trans-European Transport Network (TEN-T), with an annual cargo turnover of 700 million tons and a passenger flow of 50 million people.

Combined Forces

The 2026 exercises involve 6,000 military sailors, pilots, and marines. The headquarters of the Allied forces in Brunssum (Netherlands) provides real-time command of forces and assets in Germany, Sweden, Poland, Estonia, and Latvia. Specifically, in our republic, an expeditionary base and amphibious forces will be involved.

The allied fleet includes 20 ships, including amphibious vessels, frigates, mine countermeasure ships, tankers, and submarines. Among the 20 aircraft of the alliance are B-52 bombers, F-35B and F-16 fighters, and refueling aircraft.

The American contingent includes the 22nd Marine Construction Battalion, an underwater construction team, the 24th Combat Logistics Battalion, and marine reconnaissance special operations units.

Marine Corps women practice tasks on the USS Mount Whitney. Facebook.

The United States will also deploy a fleet of surface drones (USVRON) to develop methods for countering maritime drones. Sweden is represented by coastal defense cruise missiles. As journalists learned at the briefing, part of the exercises also took place in cyberspace and even in space!

The Russian Federation was not mentioned as a potential adversary in the distributed media documents; the legend of the maneuvers considered "any threat."

Russian Attention Was Background

Vice Admiral Jeffrey Anderson, commander of the 6th Fleet of the United States, noted that NATO exercises in the Baltic began 55 years ago. He considered it symbolic to hold the briefing on the day of Latvia's occupation...

"Large-caliber operations," as the commander stated, are intended to support allies in the region.

Major General Sean Flynn, deputy chief of staff of NATO's Combined Forces in Brunssum, called the Baltic "one of the strategically important regions" of Europe. Today's security challenges are diverse and sudden, which is why the allied fleets operate in a "realistic environment."

Mr. Flynn did bring a skeleton out of the closet – and uttered the key phrase: "Deter Russia." This caused a stir from James, a British journalist colleague from the Daily Telegraph. He asked for clarification – what do they want to show Russia? It turned out that it is the capabilities of naval forces, determination, interoperability. Admiral Anderson considers the maneuvers a "strong signal."

– The Russian presence due to our exercises was within historical norms, – commented the attention of opponents the commander of the 6th Fleet.

A Great Guarantee for Latvia

Rear Admiral Maris Polenčs, commander of the Latvian Navy (since 2022), stated that our country has been participating in the military format of BALTOPS for 30 years, which represents a "great guarantee" for the country's security.

Mr. Polenčs characterized the situation in the Baltic Sea as "dynamic and hybrid." Actions in the field of electronic warfare will continue, and satellite navigation is disrupted.

During the briefing in Riga, reporters showed interest in drones as a means of striking large forces – Ukrainian UAVs in the Black Sea disabled several Russian surface ships and a submarine in the dock.

From Mr. Anderson's perspective, the recent maneuvers were quite successful in terms of unmanned systems. General Flynn emphasized the need to protect critical underwater infrastructure (pipelines, optical fiber cables). Since NATO has taken a number of measures to protect it, particularly the operation Baltic Sentry initiated in 2025, the number of incidents has decreased.

– I do not want to speculate; we do not know about many cases, but they have become fewer, – said the military leader.

What America Displays

The 6th Fleet of the United States was established immediately after World War II. It includes all American military ships located between the East Coast of the United States and the Suez Canal, but only one ship is permanently assigned to the fleet – its flagship USS Mount Whitney, a command ship built in 1971, displacing over 17,000 tons and with a crew of more than 1,200 people, of which 700 are marines.

6 operational groups of the fleet are managed from a headquarters based in Naples. The area of responsibility extends across the entire Atlantic.

In 2003, at the peak of its strength, the fleet included more than 40 surface ships, including 2 aircraft carriers, 2-4 nuclear submarines, 175 aircraft, and 21,000 military personnel.