CBS I am the World I'm John Batson with my colleague Colonel Jeff McCausen

the United States Army retired CBS News reporting on as a veteran of NATO an annual

nuclear exercise this was announced by the new Secretary General Mark

Rudy over these last days. We're looking at F-35s, B-52s, nations taking part, were said to be 13 nations. is and is it different than other military exercises?

No, I didn't, John, because it's primarily an Air Force and Navy exercise involving aircraft.

We certainly were aware of this type of exercise, which is called steadfast noon, occurring.

An annual exercise has gone on for many years, normally in the first couple of weeks of October,

involves a couple of thousand Allied military

personal, about 60 aircraft. About 13 different members of the

Alliance will actually contribute personnel aircraft to this. And it's an exercise focused on demonstrating the coordinated

allied ability to deliver tactical nuclear weapons if in fact called upon

to do so in a major conflict.

And obviously that has then two objectives.

One is to demonstrate and preserve your operational capability to do that,

number one. And number two is to send that, number one.

And number two is to send a very clear signal,

in this case clearly to the Russian Federation

that NATO maintains that particular capability.

The Russians would have been notified far in advance that this particular exercise was going to occur.

So there was no confusion by them that something was in fact a miss with it.

That's in fact a mess with it and that's in fact

NATO was conducting some kind of a secret exercise that threatened them.

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