“If you ask the soldiers here what they are here to defend, I think you will get a different answer than from the Russian soldiers in Ukraine,” Adm. Rob Bauer told reporters. “They were thinking they were participating in an exercise, and they are now killing Ukrainians.”
The NATO exercise, Cold Response, includes about 30,000 troops from over 25 countries from Europe and North America in NATO-member Norway that shares a nearly 200-kilometer (124-mile) land border with Russia.
The drill was not linked to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, but “takes place against a dark backdrop,” Bauer said. “It has been 22 days since Russia has again invaded Ukraine, and again, in breaking international law. Therefore, for us, it is even more important to prepare for the worst and expect the unexpected.”
Russia has declined to be an observer at the exercise that aims at having Alliance members and partners practicing working together on land, in the air and at sea, said the armed forces.
The drill, which is held every two years, is due to end April 1.
TOKYO — Japanese Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi held talks Thursday with ambassadors from Visegrad Group of four European nations in Tokyo, pledging to step up Japan’s cooperation in support of Ukraine.
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