Read: https://www.politico.com/news/2026/02/13/russia-nato-wargame-germany-simulation-00778818
https://www.politico.com/news/2026/02/11/welt-war-games-simulation-germany-00776446
https://www.germanwargamingcenter.eu/en
This wargame occurred on December 1, 2025.
In each room, the players keep their eyes glued on a giant TV screen where, with the aid of AI, the initial action plays out in the form of short videos and a mock news show. During the course of the war game, the teams are kept apprised of the other team’s actions with written text that flashes on the screen. (An international group, including Longescu and Rathke, participate remotely from Brussels, Warsaw and Washington, keeping track of the action via a WhatsApp group text.) The teams cannot hear one another. But they are informed of each other’s moves — broadcast on the large screens — as the simulation unfolds.
“Blue failed to do the one thing that would have forced Red to adjust its strategy: military action,” he said. The simulation ended with many questions left unanswered. Does Russia fully hold the corridor? Does NATO eventually activate its defense plans? Can Europe act without the United States? Does the German brigade ultimately fight? Would a Russian advance succeed in reality? None of this is resolved. But that was never the point of the war game. The aim was to expose German decision-making patterns and their weaknesses — and to explore what they could mean for the alliance as a whole. One thing, however, is clear: Deterrence does not fail at the moment of escalation. It fails long before.


