The NATO Cooperative Cyber Defence Centre of Excellence (CCDCOE) contributed to the set-up and organisation of the international cyber defence exercise APEX 2025 (Allied Power Exercise), held in Seoul, Republic of Korea, from 8–10 September 2025.
The exercise brought together 180 cyber experts from 25 nations, both from NATO and the Indo-Pacific region, to practise countering transnational cyberattacks. The exercise was conducted using a cyber warfare scenario based on a hypothetical interstate conflict in the Indo-Pacific region.
For the second year, the NATO Cooperative Cyber Defence Centre of Excellence supported the exercise with its expertise in conducting large-scale cyber exercises. Experts from the NATO CCDCOE contributed to developing the exercise’s special systems and the strategic exercise (STRATEX) component. The Centre also provided a new scenario to the exercise, which is linked to the CCDCOE’s annual flagship exercises Locked Shields and Crossed Swords, replicating real-world complexity under the principle “train as you fight.”
The Allied Power Exercise was hosted by the National Intelligence Service of the Republic of Korea, in cooperation with the NATO Cooperative Cyber Defence Centre of Excellence, the National Security Research Institute, and the Ministry of National Defense (Cyber Operations Command). The exercise was first launched in 2024.