Exercise DACIAN SPRING 2025 Demonstrates NATO Readiness and Interoperability on the South-Eastern Flank
23 May 2025
BUCHAREST, Romania — Headquarters Multinational Division South-East (HQ MND-SE) successfully concluded Exercise DACIAN SPRING 2025 (DASP25), a major multinational training activity conducted from 5 to 23 May 2025 in Romania.
The exercise brought together approximately 4,000 military personnel and more than 900 military vehicles and systems from ten NATO Allies: Belgium, Bulgaria, France, Italy, Luxembourg, North Macedonia, Poland, Portugal, Romania and Spain. Activities took place at the Smârdan, Cincu, Capu Midia, Bogata and Frecăței training areas.
Planned and conducted by HQ MND-SE, DASP25 was one of the largest multinational exercises conducted in Romania in 2025. It supported NATO’s wider efforts to strengthen deterrence and defence on the South-Eastern Flank while validating multinational command and control procedures and regional defence plans.
Collective Defence in Action
DASP25 provided a realistic and complex environment in which Allied forces trained for collective defence operations. Participating units conducted tactical manoeuvres, live-fire activities, mobility and counter-mobility operations, force integration drills and command-post training.
The exercise synchronized multinational land forces under the command and control architecture of HQ MND-SE, strengthening the Headquarters’ ability to coordinate Allied military activities and enabling combat-ready formations to operate effectively together.
A Significant Belgian Deployment
The exercise marked the first deployment of a Belgian manoeuvre battalion to Romania. The movement and integration of the battalion required extensive coordination among military and civilian authorities and demonstrated NATO’s ability to deploy and integrate combat-ready forces across Europe.
Romanian Land Forces trained alongside Belgian and other Allied contingents throughout the exercise, improving operational effectiveness and strengthening multinational cooperation.
Mobility and Operational Integration
Training serials tested a broad range of capabilities, including manoeuvre warfare, engineering support, logistics, force protection, battlefield coordination and communications.
At the Frecăței Training Area, multinational units conducted complex mobility operations designed to demonstrate their ability to manoeuvre and sustain combat power in challenging conditions. Mechanized and infantry formations trained alongside combat support units to improve coordination and operational synchronization.
Additional activities at Smârdan and Cincu focused on collective defence scenarios, allowing participating units to rehearse procedures, validate communication systems and command relationships, and strengthen interoperability under realistic conditions.
Supporting NATO’s Regional Defence Plans
DASP25 contributed directly to testing NATO’s regional defence framework and ensuring that forces assigned to the Alliance’s defence plans can deploy, integrate and operate effectively under a unified command structure.
Through realistic training and multinational cooperation, the exercise reinforced the credibility of NATO’s deterrence and defence posture and reaffirmed the role of HQ MND-SE in integrating multinational land forces on the South-Eastern Flank.