Abstract:
During the Cold War, NATO created multinational rapid reaction brigades to act as a ‘signalling’ tool in the event of increased tensions with the Soviet Union. Known as Ace Mobile Force (Land) or AMF (L), these formations served as the basis for NATO’s current multinational formations in the Balkans and in Afghanistan. This article, published in the Journal of Strategic Studies, examine the origins and structure of AMF(L) including the controversial nuclear component of the force.
Commentary:
NATO disbanded AMF after the Cold War. If it had retained it, the formation could have been used to signal Putin over the course of his escapades against Norway, the Baltic States, and Ukraine. Now NATO will spend a year talking about it, then recreate it under a new name, and be afraid to actually use it.
Originally Published in Journal of Strategic Studues.