Kyiv Participates as Observer in Major Northern Europe JEF Drills

Ukraine participated for the first time in the Joint Expeditionary Forces (JEF) "TARASSIS – 2025" international exercises as an observer.

The Gaze reports on it, referring to a statement made by the Ukrainian Ambassador to the United Kingdom, Valerii Zaluzhnyi, on Facebook.

The "TARASSIS – 2025" exercises are taking place from September 1 to October 17 in the northern part of NATO's area of responsibility, covering the Baltic Sea, Northern Europe, the Arctic, and the North Atlantic. 

This is the largest set of exercises in the history of the JEF coalition, which is working to achieve full operational capabilities.

Ukraine's participation as an observer was the first practical step towards a stronger partnership with the JEF. 

“We are continuing to work on developing cooperation and are moving step by step towards Ukraine's full membership in this coalition,” Zaluzhnyi wrote.

The "TARASSIS – 2025" exercises are also being held in response to the Russian-Belarusian Zapad-2025 maneuvers and are seen as a key tool for enhancing combat readiness and ensuring security in Northern Europe.

The JEF brings together ten NATO member states in Northern Europe and was established in 2014 on the initiative of the United Kingdom in response to Russia's aggression against Ukraine. A series of command-staff and military exercises by the coalition are planned until 2031 to prevent potential crises in the region.

As The Gaze informed earlier, the UK and Ukraine plan to jointly produce interceptor drones under the “Octopus” project to counter Russian Shahed drones. 

Britain will initially produce about 2,000 drones per month and send them to Ukraine. The initiative aims to protect Ukrainian civilian and energy infrastructure from frequent Russian drone attacks.