USNI:
REYKJAVIK, ICELAND – The head of naval forces in Europe is satisfied with the increased presence he’s seen in his theater this year, but he stressed that the U.S. will also have to rely on its allies and partners to counter a growing threat.
2018 brought a noticeable uptick in naval presence in Europe, after Adm. James Foggo and other leaders have sounded the alarm about Russia’s increased submarine activity and aggression towards its neighbors. This spring, Foggo, who commands U.S. naval forces in Europe and Africa, had carrier USS Harry S. Truman (CVN-75) and most of the strike group’s escorts, as well as two of the three ships in the Iwo Jima Amphibious Ready Group, in his theater during their regularly scheduled deployments.
Now the Truman CSG is back in Europe now after a short visit to its Virginia homeport, and the entire Iwo Jima ARG has returned to Europe for NATO exercise Trident Juncture.As the Navy has pushed its Dynamic Force Employment (DFE) concept – that the fleet should be strategically predictable but tactically unpredictable – the shakeup in deployment patterns has so far solely benefited U.S. 6th Fleet at the expense of U.S. 5th Fleet in the Middle East.
