Exercise Maple Resolve

Exercise Maple Resolve
Name	Exercise Maple Resolve
Type	Multinational military field exercise
Date	21 September – 5 October 2024
Location	Ottawa Valley, Ontario, Canada
Participants	Canada, United States, United Kingdom, France, Germany, Netherlands, Norway, Australia
Command	Canadian Joint Operations Command
Objective	Interoperability, combined-arms maneuver, civil-military coordination

Exercise Maple Resolve Exercise Maple Resolve was a large-scale multinational field exercise held in the Ottawa Valley, designed to validate interoperability, command-and-control, and sustainment among NATO and allied units. The exercise brought together land, air, and maritime elements to practice combined-arms maneuver, information sharing, and multinational logistics in a realistic training environment.

Background and objectives

The planning cycle for Maple Resolve drew on lessons from Operation Reassurance, Trident Juncture, Cold Response, Steadfast Defender, and national readiness initiatives such as Strong, Secure, Engaged and the Defence Policy Review frameworks. Primary objectives included validating joint task force headquarters procedures used by Canadian Joint Operations Command, testing secure communications stacks employed by NATO Communications and Information Agency, and rehearsing interoperability protocols from North Atlantic Council directives. Secondary aims emphasized civil-military coordination with partners like Public Safety Canada, the provincial authorities of Ontario, and allied liaison teams from United States Northern Command, Allied Joint Force Command Naples, and United States European Command.

Participating forces and command structure

Contributing formations included brigade-level elements from 1 Canadian Mechanized Brigade Group, armored units from the 3rd Canadian Division, aviation detachments from Royal Canadian Air Force wings, and multinational battlegroups fielded by the United States Army Europe and Africa, British Army, French Army, German Army, and Royal Netherlands Army. Naval assets operated in support roles with liaison from the Royal Canadian Navy and embedded observers from United States Navy and Royal Navy. Command and control was exercised through a combined joint task force headquarters established under the oversight of Canadian Joint Operations Command and coordinated with representatives from NATO Allied Rapid Reaction Corps, Allied Command Transformation, and national defense ministries including Ministry of Defence (United Kingdom), Ministry of Armed Forces (France), and Bundeswehr. Special operations observers from Canadian Special Operations Forces Command, United States Special Operations Command, and Special Air Service attended to evaluate unconventional-threat responses.

Timeline and key phases

The exercise unfolded over three principal phases synchronized with planning models used in Mission Rehearsal Exercise doctrine. Phase I (validation and integration) mirrored staff work practiced during Operation Noble Eagle and included command-post exercises and information-assurance drills. Phase II (combined-arms live-fire and maneuver) staged progressive force-on-force scenarios with combined arms drawn from mechanized brigades and aviation regiments, reflecting concepts from Armoured Brigade Combat Team operations. Phase III (stabilization and civilian interface) emphasized civil-response measures, humanitarian assistance, and transition-to-civilian-authority activities comparable to operations like Operation Athena and Unified Protector. The timeline featured sequential certification events consistent with standards from Allied Joint Doctrine.

Training activities and scenarios

Training activities encompassed collective live-fire exercises, close air support coordination, joint fires integration, cyber-defense red-team engagements, medical evacuation drills, and civil-affairs liaison operations. Scenarios ranged from high-intensity conventional engagements to hybrid-threat and information-operations vignettes modeled on incidents from Crimea crisis, Donbas conflict, and stabilization examples drawn from Operation Enduring Freedom. Participants used simulation systems interoperable with Joint Fires Observer processes and exercised coordination with civilian agencies including Global Affairs Canada and International Committee of the Red Cross observers for humanitarian law compliance. Aviation training involved platforms from CF-18 Hornet squadrons, AH-64 Apache units, and allied transport assets similar to those used by Royal Air Force and United States Air Force mobility wings.

Logistics, safety, and environmental measures

Logistics planning leveraged lessons from sustainment operations in Operation Atlantic Resolve and incorporated multinational supply-chain coordination with support from entities such as NATO Support and Procurement Agency and national logistic brigades. Safety protocols followed standards promulgated by Transport Canada and military occupational safety frameworks used by the Canadian Forces Health Services, with range safety officers from allied services conducting risk assessments aligned with NATO Standardization Office guidance. Environmental mitigation included habitat protection measures coordinated with Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry and monitoring by conservation bodies referenced in agreements similar to Migratory Birds Convention Act obligations; hazardous-material handling adhered to standards akin to those in Canadian Environmental Protection Act implementations.

Outcomes, assessments, and lessons learned

Post-exercise assessments compiled by the combined evaluation team cited improved tactical interoperability among armored, infantry, and aviation units, enhanced secure data-link performance interoperable with NATO Federated Mission Networking, and identified shortfalls in multinational logistics enablers and medical evacuation timelines. Recommendations referenced capability investments aligned with procurement programs such as replacements for CF-18 Hornet and enhancements to Armoured Combat Vehicle fleets, and doctrinal updates proposed to Allied Joint Doctrine and national defense white papers. After-action reports called for expanded cyber-resilience training with inputs from Communications Security Establishment and closer civil-military planning with agencies like Public Safety Canada and provincial emergency management offices. Overall, Maple Resolve contributed to readiness benchmarks used by participating ministries of defence and allied headquarters to shape future multinational exercises and capability development.

Category:Military exercises