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Operation Dragoon Ride

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Operation Dragoon Ride, Day 4

Operation Dragoon Ride was a 2015 military exercise of the US army and NATO involving transfer of military technique and personnel from the Baltic states across Poland and the Czech Republic to Germany,[1] following the Operation Atlantic Resolve. From 20 March to 1 April 2015, a convoy of armored fighting vehicles (amongst them Strykers) returned via road to their garrison Vilseck, after manoeuvres in Poland, Estonia and Lithuania.[2] The road march was intended to demonstrate solidarity and support for Central and Eastern European NATO allies in response to Russia’s actions in Ukraine, beginning in March 2014.[3] The convoy consisted of more than 500 American troops of the 3rd Squadron of the 2nd Cavalry Regiment (nicknamed "Dragoons").[4]

Public reaction

Czech Republic

Czech PM Bohuslav Sobotka (center) visiting the convoy in Prague on 31 March 2015

Several opposition protests against the exercise were organized by civil society groups prior to the unit’s passage through the Czech Republic.[5] The opponents were, however, largely outnumbered by supporters of the march, despite contradictory reports the Kremlin-financed news websites and other media brought to the public,[6][7] and despite pro-Russian stance of the Czech president, Miloš Zeman.[1] On other hand, president Zeman denounced calling convoy as "Occupation forces, because We (Czech Republic) have experiences with occupations (1938 and 1968) and it looks different."[8] According to an article published by the Newsweek magazine, the exercise met with a "mixed response" in the Czech Republic.[9] Several hundred people assembled in Wenceslas Square on March 28 to express both support and opposition to the “dragoon march.” The opposition protest was organized by a coalition of groups including the No to Bases group, the Movement for Direct Democracy, Stop Church Restitution, the Communist Party of Bohemia and Moravia, and others.[10] Later that day, the conservative group National Democracy (led by Adam Bartoš, an activist frequently accused of anti-semitism in the mainstream Czech media[11][12]) picketed the U.S. embassy in Prague, opposing what it described as the “American invaders.”[13]

After the arrival of the convoy to Prague-Ruzyně on 30 March 2015, the commander Tim Payment said in an interview for ČTK (the national public service news agency of the Czech Republic) that "...[the convoy] received unbelievable support everywhere they stopped over."[14] Jiří Vyvadil, the head of the group Friends of Russia, a former Social Democrat senator, and one of the main organizers of protests against the convoy, was one of the very few people who actually attended demonstration at Ruzyně barracks on 30 March 2015, and left the spot after being verbally attacked by the supporters of the convoy.[15] More than 20,000 people visited Ruzyně barracks during the stay of the convoy, while only a small group of protesters attended demonstration in front of the Embassy of the United States in Prague.[16] Tomáš Vandas, chairman of the far-right non-parliamentary Workers' Party of Social Justice, was a speaker during the protest at the embassy.[16]

82% of Czechs approved and supported the NATO convoy, according to an opinion poll by the independent STEM agency.[17]

Russian state-sponsored media such as Russia Today brought different reports and focused rather on protests against the convoy.[18][19][20]

The Czech Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka visited the convoy in Prague on 31 March 2015, as well as Martin Stropnický, the Minister of Defense, and Karel Schwarzenberg, a politician and former Czech presidential candidate. Both Sobotka and Petr Pavel (Chairman of the NATO Military Committee), have pointed out that various reports about the "divided [Czech] nation" were just a "media fiction".[21]

See also

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Operation Dragoon Ride.
  1. ^ a b "Cavalry ride". The Economist. 1 April 2015. Retrieved 4 April 2015.
  2. ^ Lamothe, Dan (24 March 2015). "In show of force, the Army's Operation Dragoon Ride rolls through Europe". Washington Post. Retrieved 4 April 2015.
  3. ^ Lyman, Rick (29 March 2015). "An American Military Convoy in Europe Aims to Reassure Allies". The New York Times. Retrieved 4 April 2015.
  4. ^ Lendon, Brad (26 March 2015). "Cheers, tears for U.S. Army convoy in Europe". CNN. Retrieved 4 April 2015.
  5. ^ "Czech military ready for protests against U.S. convoy". Prague Monitor. 23 March 2015. Retrieved 6 April 2015.
  6. ^ ""Češi protestují proti americkému konvoji," lžou ruská média" (in Czech). aktuálně.cz. 31 March 2015. Retrieved 7 April 2015.
  7. ^ Sindelar, Daisy (30 March 2015). "U.S. Convoy: In Czech Republic, Real-Life Supporters Outnumber Virtual Opponents". Radio Free Europe. Retrieved 7 April 2015.
  8. ^ http://liberec.idnes.cz/zeman-nesouhlasi-s-tim-aby-byl-americky-konvoj-oznacovan-za-okupacni-armadu-17c-/liberec-zpravy.aspx?c=A150324_132123_liberec-zpravy_tm
  9. ^ "Pictures: U.S. 'Dragoon Ride' Convoy Prompts Mixed Reactions in Eastern Europe". Newsweek. 30 March 2015. Retrieved 7 April 2015.
  10. ^ Kopecký, Josef (28 March 2015). "Hanba NATO! křičeli odpůrci konvoje. Hanba Kremlu, kontrovali zastánci". Mladá fronta DNES (in Czech). iDNES. Retrieved 7 April 2015.
  11. ^ Doležal, Jiří X. (16 February 2012). "Antisemitské hovado hovoří" (in Czech). Reflex. Retrieved 8 April 2015.
  12. ^ Menschik, Tomáš; Kolář, Petr (4 May 2014). "Seznam Židů. Nový rozměr pravicového extremismu v Česku" (in Czech). Týden. Retrieved 8 April 2015.
  13. ^ "Opponents, supporters of U.S. army convoy meet in Prague center". Prague Post. 28 March 2015. Retrieved 6 April 2015.
  14. ^ "All parts of U.S. military convoy reach Prague-Ruzyne barracks". ČTK. 30 March 2015. Retrieved 8 April 2015.
  15. ^ Wirnitzer, Jan (30 March 2015). "Dragouni jsou v Praze. V úterý ukážou techniku, večer je čeká koncert". Mladá fronta DNES (in Czech). iDNES. Retrieved 8 April 2015.
  16. ^ a b "Kasárna v Ruzyni navštívilo až 20 tisíc lidí. Před ambasádou demonstrovala jen malá skupina". Hospodářské noviny (in Czech). iHNED. 31 March 2015. Retrieved 8 April 2015.
  17. ^ "Dragouni odjeli. Američané zamávali v Rozvadově a vyrazili domů". Mladá fronta DNES (in Czech). iDNES. 1 April 2015. Retrieved 8 April 2015.
  18. ^ "'Stop US Army': Czech activists protest military convoy (VIDEO)". Russia Today. 29 March 2015. Retrieved 8 April 2015.
  19. ^ "Breakdown: Czech spectators give up waiting for US Army convoy after 7hr wait". Russia Today. 30 March 2015. Retrieved 8 April 2015.
  20. ^ "'Tanks? No thanks!': Czechs unhappy about US military convoy crossing country". Russia Today. 22 March 2015. Retrieved 8 April 2015.
  21. ^ Wirnitzer, Jan (31 March 2015). "Rozdělený národ? Mediální fikce, řekli Sobotka s Pavlem mezi dragouny". Mladá fronta DNES (in Czech). iDNES. Retrieved 8 April 2015.
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