Steadfast Noon: NATO calls its nuclear drill routine, so why is Sweden sending Gripens?

NATO begins its annual nuclear deterrence exercise, Steadfast Noon, on Tuesday 13 October 2026, hosted by Italy. Seventeen nations will take part, and NATO describes the scale as in line with previous editions.

The alliance's framing is deliberate and consistent: the exercise is long-planned and routine, no live weapons are used, it is not linked to current world events, and it is not directed against any country. Secretary General Mark Rutte called NATO a defensive alliance and said the drill helps preserve peace, prevent coercion and deter aggression. "It also sends a clear message of unity and resolve," he said.

That last sentence is where the routine framing and the political reading meet. Steadfast Noon tests the procedures and coordination behind NATO's nuclear deterrent — the capability the alliance says underpins its defence. It involves aircraft capable of carrying nuclear weapons, and a different ally hosts it each year. Scale, venue and participant list are read as signals even when NATO insists nothing is being signalled.

This year's Nordic participation carries its own weight. Sweden is deploying JAS 39 Gripen fighter aircraft and personnel to train its ability to provide conventional support to NATO's nuclear deterrence, according to the Swedish government. Finland is sending staff officers. The Finnish Ministry of Defence says it assesses participation case by case and that staff officers best match its national objectives this year. In 2025, Finland took part with F/A-18 Hornet fighters.

For comparison, the 2025 edition involved more than 70 aircraft, 14 allies and roughly 2,000 personnel, with operations at Volkel in the Netherlands, RAF Lakenheath in the United Kingdom, Kleine-Brogel in Belgium and Skrydstrup in Denmark.

Coverage has placed the drill against heightened tensions with Russia over the war in Ukraine and Baltic flank security. NATO explicitly rejects that linkage. Both things can be true at once: a scheduled training activity can be routine in design and still function as messaging when it lands during acute geopolitical friction. The open question is not whether Steadfast Noon is planned in advance — NATO says it is — but how much of its political meaning is set by the calendar and how much by the moment.