(VOVWORLD) -NATO announced Monday preparations for a series of large-scale exercises near the borders of Russia and Belarus.
 Illustrative image. (Photo: Stars and Stripes) |
These maneuvers, including Steadfast Defender 2024, represent the largest Western military exercises since the Cold War and are scheduled to last two months.
Over 100,000 military personnel from 32 countries will join Steadfast Defender 2024. Poland will play a special role in these events, as the main activities are scheduled to take place in Poland and the Baltic countries.
British Defense Secretary Grant Shapps said the UK will send 20,000 personnel, the largest British troop deployment in the past 40 years.
Following Steadfast Defender 2024, the Nordic Response 2024 exercise involving 20,000 NATO troops will take place in the northern part of Norway, Sweden, and Finland. The exercise's maritime component will involve 50 submarines, destroyers, corvettes, aircraft carriers, and amphibious ships. Its main phase is scheduled for March 3-14 near the Norwegian cities of Bjerkvik and Tromsø.