NATO to test 5G capabilities in Latvia with virtual reality, drones

MILAN — NATO’s Allied Command Transformation, in charge of developing the alliance’s digital backbone, has signed an agreement with Latvia that will allow member nations to assess new capabilities at the Baltic country’s 5G military test bed.

The Latvian Ministry of Defense announced this week that it signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the command to use the country’s test site for defense applications. As part of this, the two partners are to hold a second operational experiment in October, at the Ādaži military base, to evaluate the alliance’s newest research-and-development initiatives and the tactical 5G abilities of the site.

“This event will see the use of virtual and augmented reality, unmanned vehicles, sensors, and applications within a tactical 5G bubble,” an ACT news release stated. “ACT will demonstrate how 5G’s ability to provide ultra-reliable and low-latency connections can bring additive capabilities to NATO communication and information systems.”

The Ādaži test bed for next-generation telecommunication networks was built in 2020 and represents the first of its kind in Europe.

An initial five-day operational trial was organized in the country last November by NATO, the Latvian MoD and the Latvian armed forces Enhanced Forward Presence Battlegroup. The event saw augmented and virtual reality software integrated with 5G mobile telecom technologies to optimize how operators grasp technical skills such as remote piloting of military vehicles and receiving assistance from hundreds of kilometers away.

By 2030, the objectives of NATO’s digital transformation plan are to allow the alliance to conduct and transition to multi-domain missions, ensure interoperability across all sectors, enhance situational awareness and facilitate data-driven decisions.

The rising use of 5G in civilian operations has been driving further military applications and highlighting key advantages it can provide to armed forces. Compared with 4G, these include bringing a much higher-speed connectivity to the battlefield, and hence actionable intelligence to soldiers, while also minimizing vulnerabilities with its lower latency.

For some time now, military leaders have stressed the urgency for countries to invest in the technology to avoid falling behind globally. Currently, China is regarded by many experts as having outpaced the U.S. in the wireless 5G network market.

“While the U.S. needs to invest in military modernization to deter China, it also needs to become a big player in the 5G wireless network industry,” commander of U.S. Southern Command, Gen. Laura Richardson, said at a panel hosted by the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington on Aug. 4.

“Information sharing between military allies utilizing a 5G network is absolutely crucial, but what is even more crucial is relying on a network that is completely secure,” she added.

Elisabeth Gosselin-Malo was a Europe correspondent for Defense News. She covers a wide range of topics related to military procurement and international security, and specializes in reporting on the aviation sector. She is based in Milan, Italy.

米兰——负责发展联盟数字骨干网的北约盟军转型司令部与拉脱维亚签署了一项协议，该协议将允许成员国在波罗的海国家的 5G 军事试验场评估新能力。

拉脱维亚国防部本周宣布，已与盟军司令部签署谅解备忘录，将利用该国的测试场地开展国防应用研究。作为协议的一部分，双方将于10月在阿达日军事基地举行第二次作战试验，以评估联盟最新的研发成果以及该场地的5G战术能力。

“本次活动将在战术5G环境中运用虚拟现实和增强现实技术、无人驾驶车辆、传感器和各种应用，”ACT新闻稿指出。“ACT将展示5G如何凭借其超可靠和低延迟的连接能力，为北约通信和信息系统带来增强功能。”

Ādaži 下一代电信网络测试平台建于 2020 年，是欧洲首个此类平台。

去年11月，北约、拉脱维亚国防部和拉脱维亚武装部队增强前沿部署战斗群在该国组织了一次为期五天的初步作战试验。此次试验将增强现实和虚拟现实软件与5G移动通信技术相结合，旨在优化操作人员掌握远程驾驶军用车辆和接收数百公里外支援等技术技能的方式。

到 2030 年，北约数字化转型计划的目标是使联盟能够开展和过渡到多领域任务，确保所有部门之间的互操作性，增强态势感知能力，并促进数据驱动的决策。

5G在民用领域的日益普及推动了其在军事领域的进一步应用，并凸显了其为军队带来的关键优势。与4G相比，5G能够为战场提供更快的连接速度，从而为士兵提供可操作的情报，同时凭借其更低的延迟最大限度地减少安全漏洞。

一段时间以来，各国军方领导人一直强调各国必须加大对5G技术的投资，以免在全球竞争中落后。目前，许多专家认为中国在5G无线网络市场已经超越美国。

“美国需要投资军事现代化来威慑中国，同时也需要成为 5G 无线网络行业的重要参与者，”美国南方司令部司令劳拉·理查森将军 8 月 4 日在华盛顿战略与国际研究中心主办的一个小组讨论会上表示。

她补充说：“利用 5G 网络进行军事盟友之间的信息共享至关重要，但更重要的是要依靠一个完全安全的网络。”

伊丽莎白·戈斯林-马洛曾任《防务新闻》欧洲通讯员。她的报道涵盖军事采购和国际安全等广泛领域，尤其擅长航空领域的报道。她常驻意大利米兰。