Northern Viking 2024 exercises defence of Iceland

The Northern Viking 2024 defence exercise will take place in and around Iceland from 26 August to 3 September. The main purpose of the exercise is to practice the defence of vital national infrastructure, the sea routes around Iceland, search and rescue, host nation support and the coordination of relevant agencies in Iceland.

The exercise has been held since 1982 and is based on the provisions of the 1951 Defence Agreement between Iceland and the United States.

In addition to Iceland and the United States, troops, aircraft and ships from Denmark, France, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland and Portugal will participate in the exercise, as well as a part of the Standing NATO Maritime Group One (SNMG1).

The exercise will mostly take place in and around Keflavík Air Base. It aims to strengthen interoperability and force readiness between the U.S., Iceland, and Allied nations while enhancing the ability to command and control joint and coalition forces in defence of Iceland and Sea Lines of Communication in the Greenland, Iceland, United Kingdom (GIUK) gap.

The exercise is thus aimed at facing traditional military threats on land, at sea and in the air, but also multi-faceted threats and acts of sabotage, which will test the Icelandic authorities and the response capacity of Icelandic agencies.

Specific exercise events include an amphibious landing, expeditionary and construction capability, and search and rescue and humanitarian assistance.

A total of about 1,200 participants are expected to take part in the exercise, of which about 200 are from Iceland’s Department for Defence of the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Coast Guard, Icelandic Commissioner of National Police, Civil Protection and Emergency Management and other institutions.