NATO’s marines are among the toughest troops in the Alliance. But in the Arctic, tough isn’t enough – marines must be unusually skilled and resilient to survive the freezing temperatures and rugged landscape.
In early 2024, marine forces from several NATO Allies got to test their mettle against the High North, putting their cold weather lessons into practice while learning new tactics from their counterparts during exercise Steadfast Defender 24. Finnish, Italian and Swedish marines worked together to stage amphibious raids on the coast of Norway, while US marines improved their survival skills inland, learning what their Nordic Allies already know: when it comes to deep snow, skis are the only way to get around.
The exercise was particularly poignant for Finland and Sweden, NATO’s two newest members. Finland joined in 2023, while Sweden joined in the midst of the exercise, with many Swedish troops holding impromptu celebrations to mark their accession.
Marines need to be prepared to come ashore and defend Allied territory, no matter the time, place or climate. This short documentary follows the marines during Steadfast Defender, showing that they’re more than capable of braving the elements to fulfil their mandate.
Transcript
TRANSCRIPT (AUDIO AND TEXT ON SCREEN)
—VOICEOVER—
“NATO’s marines have landed. This time, in the Arctic Circle, where the nights are long and the cold never quits. Their mission: to push back a simulated attack on Norway and prove their ability to keep our people safe by defending every inch of Allied soil.
But as these marines are about to find out, the Arctic is unlike anywhere else in NATO, and it will push them to their limits.”
— TEXT ON SCREEN —
NATO’S ARCTIC MARINES: JOURNEY THROUGH THE HIGH NORTH
—VOICEOVER—
Harstad, Norway.
In the bitter cold of the winter morning, marines from the Finnish Navy’s Nyland Brigade haul their gear onto the US Navy ship Gunston Hall.
This will be their home as they put their skills to the test during NATO’s largest collective defence drills in decades: Steadfast Defender 24.
The Gunston Hall is a big ship, but that doesn’t make it easier for the Finns and their bulky rucksacks. Moving to their quarters requires a bit of multinational teamwork”.
—SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH —
FINNISH MARINE
“It’s way harder to navigate than I thought.”
—SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH —
FINNISH MARINE
“It’s pretty cramped. The first impression is, we have too much stuff.”
—VOICEOVER—
Anchors aweigh.
For this exercise, the Gunston Hall will patrol the massive fjords of Norway’s Arctic coast and help the Finnish marines launch raids on the shore.
To get there, they’ll hitch a ride with their Nordic neighbours. The Swedish Amphibious Corps has sent two CB-90 combat boats to the exercise, each capable of carrying more than 20 marines to shore. They dock in the Gunston Hall’s well deck, a massive, floodable compartment that allows it to carry small boats.
The Amphibious Corps was formed to defend Sweden’s long, rugged coastline, including the more than 30,000 islands in the Stockholm Archipelago.
Now, they’re learning how to apply their specialised skills to the collective defence of NATO Allies.
—SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH —
GRAPHIC: CAPTAIN SJÖSTRÖM
Swedish Amphibious Corps
“So what distinguishes a Swedish marine is since we operate so dispersed, we can operate by ourselves for a long period of time in pretty harsh environments”.
—VOICEOVER—
“But what makes a marine?
Amphibious troops all over NATO take pride in being able to cope with the toughness of their job.”
—SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH —
GRAPHIC: MAJOR BJORN RÖBERG
Finnish Navy Marines
“Well, you have to be resilient and you have to have a strong will. A will to push yourself to the extreme, and a bit further.”
—VOICEOVER—
“They work in wet, often cold conditions. They have to travel light, and without the guarantee of resupply, they must think on their feet to get the job done.”
—SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH —
CAPTAIN SJÖSTRÖM
Swedish Amphibious Corps
“We must be innovative to solve different tasks, and when problems occur. Because they will”.
—VOICEOVER—
“Marines are tough, sure. But in the Arctic, tough isn’t enough.
When the temperature drops below 20 degrees centigrade, it stops being cold and starts being dangerous.
For untrained troops, it can be lethal.
That’s why the US Marine Corps sends troops to Norway to learn winter’s harsh lessons.
These marines from 1st Battalion, 2nd Marine Regiment have hacked a home out of the dense forests and deep snow near Setermoen.
They sleep and wake in extreme cold. To drink, they boil snow. At this early stage, it’s just enough to survive. But later, they’ll need to learn how to not just survive, but fight and win in these brutal conditions.”
—SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH —
GRAPHIC: LT COL TED DRISCOLL
US Marine Corps
“We have a large number of marines who have never been in the snow in their life, before. So as marines, we have a hallmark of being able to fight in any clime and place. And in order to do that, it just takes practice. And just grow in that proficiency through the repetition”.
—VOICEOVER—
“For marines used to firm ground, the deep snow is a serious obstacle. Walking through it would quickly exhaust them. The only option is to glide along the surface using skis.
Easier said than done, perhaps”.
—SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH —
GRAPHIC: 1ST LIEUTENANT SAMUEL KOVALESKI
US Marine Corps
“The falling’s all part of it. Just learning the right ways to fall, and then the best ways to get back up after you fall is very important. The hard part about being in the Marine Corps and skiing is you have to ski with your main pack and your weapon, so teaching guys now the basics without all that, helps just the building block approach.
They’re picking it up very fast, and I’m really happy with what I’m seeing.”
—VOICEOVER—
Out here, the marines need a reliable source of food, fuel and ammunition. Getting it to them, though, can be a struggle.
—SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH —
GRAPHIC: 2ND LIEUTENANT TIMOT COVERT
US Marine Corps
“What we’re seeing right here is the offloading of a resupply that comes in every couple of days. The biggest challenge is just the sheer amount of logistics that’s required to sustain. Everything just gets doubled out here and it’s significantly more complex”.
—VOICEOVER—
The cold exhausts not just the body, but the mind as well. Eventually, your willpower breaks down, despair creeps in and thoughts turn from accomplishing the mission to saving yourself while you still can.
The marines call this “going internal”.
To stop this from happening, they rely on their greatest resource: each other.
—SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH —
GRAPHIC: CPL ADAM COLLINS
US Marine Corps
“At least for us, we just kind of joke around with each other. Kind of poke and prod with each other, share stories. Keep the spirits up and the motivation, don’t let anyone break off”.
—SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH —
REPORTER
In the Marine Corps, have you ever done anything this hard?
—SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH —
CORPORAL ADAM COLLINS
US Marine Corps
“Uh ... no, not really. I personally think this is my hardest training op I’ve ever done”.
—VOICEOVER—
“While Norway sleeps, the Finnish marines get ready to sneak ashore on Swedish combat boats.
Far from the theatrics of Hollywood, modern amphibious operations often rely on speed and stealth to succeed.
That’s where the Swedish marines come in.
The Combat Boat 90, or CB-90, cuts through the Norwegian fjords like a knife.
With a steel-reinforced hull that can grind against the rocky Nordic shores and enough gun mounts to handle any threats on the beach, the CB-90 is an apex predator in its natural environment”.
—SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH —
GRAPHIC: SERGEANT ANDER
Swedish Amphibious Corps
“It’s like driving a sports car. It’s the best work I could imagine. It’s built to be durable and can go ashore on rocky cliffs, virtually anything”.
—SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH —
REPORTER
“So how was the ride?”
—SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH —
ANON
“What?”
—SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH —
REPORTER
“How was the ride”?
—SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH —
FINNISH MARINE
“It was good”.
—VOICEOVER—
Fair enough.
The Finnish marines of the Nyland Brigade are unique. Unlike the rest of their country’s defence forces, their first language isn’t Finnish, but Swedish. This means they can work hand-in-glove with their Swedish counterparts.
—SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH —
MAJOR BJORN RÖBERG
Finnish Navy Marines
“Our brigade is founded by a Swedish king. A Swedish company can come to Finland, report in to the battalion commander, and three hours from that, they can do a combined mission already”.
—VOICEOVER—
“Together, the marines must trek through the hilly terrain to scout out a helicopter landing zone. The forest is dense and the ground is steep. It’s slow-going, even for expert skiers like the Finnish marines”.
—SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH —
GRAPHIC: CORPORAL ÖHMAN
Finnish Navy Marines
“The thing about Finns is we all more or less grew up on skis. But ... Yeah, I’m a bit scared to climb the biggest hills here because it’s quite different from Finland. Finland is very flat, so”.
—VOICEOVER—
“With the landing zone secured, it’s time to kick off a uniquely NATO operation. An Italian helicopter lifts a Finnish snowmobile off an American warship and carries it to a clearing in Norway”.
—SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH —
ANON
“Helicopters are coming.”
—VOICEOVER—
“This snowmobile will make their lives much easier as they push further inland.
Meanwhile, a Swedish fire control team decides to get a head start on NATO integration. They meet up with the Italian marines from the San Marco Brigade who have landed nearby and are practising calling for artillery fire from an Italian warship. Fortunately, the Swedes are already familiar with Alliance tactics and procedures”.
—SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH —
GRAPHIC: SENIOR SSGT GUSTAFSSON
Swedish Amphibious Corps
“Say for instance in a future conflict, being able to fire with different countries just one that is on station in that area at that time, is making us a hundred times more dangerous for a possible enemy.
It’s always nice to hear different countries’ voices on the radio, and knowing that you do basically the same thing already. You don’t need any pre-training, you just get right into it”.
—VOICEOVER—
“The US marines have come a long way, both figuratively and literally. After training in Setermoen, they’ve deployed to Finnmark, Norway’s northernmost region, for a sort of final exam in winter warfare.
Here, there are no instructors. The marines are on their own, with miles of Norwegian wilderness before them. Fortunately, hard lessons have paid off”.
—SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH —
2ND LIEUTENANT TIM COVERT
US Marine Corps
“The difference between us a month ago and now is night and day. People know how to take care of themselves better, they understand their daily, day-to-day routines, they understand the basics of what they need to get through day-to-day, which means the battalion can focus more on being enemy-oriented rather than focusing on sustaining ourselves internally”.
—VOICEOVER—
“Being able to move in this challenging terrain is one thing, being able to fight is quite another. The deep snow slows the marines down and in this mostly featureless landscape, there’s little cover from hostile fire. To prevail, the marines need to be fast and aggressive”.
—SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH —
LIEUTENANT COLONEL TED DRISCOLL
US Marine Corps
“Being able to operate in an environment like this truly makes us capable of operating in any clime and place, which provides more options for our decision-makers when they need the military to respond.
As these young marines and sailors get to work side by side with the Norwegians, with the Finns, with the Swedes, their own confidence in just how good these Allies are, continues to grow”.
—VOICEOVER—
“In March 2024, while its marines were deployed to Norway, Sweden made history by formally joining NATO as the Alliance’s 32nd Ally. It was an emotional moment for the Swedes, who in joining NATO ended more than 200 years of military non-alignment”.
—SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH —
CAPTAIN SJÖSTRÖM
Swedish Amphibious Corps
“Being part of NATO feels good. From now it’s going to be a lot easier in many ways and I hope the interoperability with Allied partners will be easier from now”.
—SOUNDBITE IN ENGLISH —
LIEUTENANT COLONEL TED DRISCOLL
US Marine Corps
“Sweden’s joining NATO absolutely makes the Alliance stronger. I can tell you they are highly competent, they are very skilled and they share our values and our kind of collective ethos that goes into our operations”.
—VOICEOVER—
“The Nordic countries are now united under the banner of collective defence.
At a time when European security is threatened by a major conflict, NATO’s Arctic marines must stand ready to defend the Alliance, no matter the time or place.”
END
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