Tomorrow, large-scale annual NATO Baltops 22 international military exercises with the participation of 16 countries will begin in the Baltic Sea, the LSM portal reports with reference to the Latvian armed forces.
"The large-scale annual international military exercises Baltops 22 will be held in the Baltic Sea region from June 5 to 17 with the participation of 14 NATO members - the United States, Belgium, Bulgaria, Denmark, Estonia, France, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Great Britain, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Turkey, as well as two NATO partner countries - Sweden and Finland", the message says, RIA Novosti reports.
Exercises to commemorate the 500th anniversary of the Swedish Navy will begin in Stockholm. This will be followed by tactical maneuvers in the waters and airspace of the Baltic Sea region, and the exercises will end in Kiel (Germany).
During the joint exercises, the participants intend to demonstrate their readiness to provide collective protection in the Baltic region, thereby strengthening regional security and contributing to deterrence.
It is noted that Baltops is one of the largest exercises in Northern Europe, and their goal for this year is to further improve the interaction and interoperability of various types of forces and weapons not only within NATO, but also together with the Alliance's partner countries.
In total, more than 4 thousand soldiers of naval, air and ground forces, as well as amphibious assault forces, more than 60 aircraft and 40 ships of various classes will take part in the exercises, which will demonstrate "the NATO combined forces' readiness for rapid response, control over the Baltic Sea and the ability to transfer large military forces in a short time to any place in the Baltic region".
