45,000 Russian soldiers conduct nationwide exercises
More than 45,000 troops, along with fighter jets and submarines, began military exercises across Russia yesterday, one of Moscow's biggest shows of force since tensions with the West escalated.
According to Reuters, President Vladimir Putin ordered the Northern Fleet to be ready for combat in exercises in the Arctic region.
"New challenges and threats to military security require the armed forces to increase their capabilities. In particular, attention must be paid to the newly created strategic formations in the north," Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said.
Russia’s Arctic drills, which involve nearly 40,000 troops, 41 warships and 15 submarines, are expected to last all week as Russia marks the first anniversary of its annexation of Ukraine’s Crimea peninsula.
Norway, a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), is also holding the "Joint Viking" exercise involving 5,000 troops in Finnmark county, which borders Russia in the Arctic Circle.
Norway said the exercise was planned before the crisis in Ukraine. "However, the current security situation in Europe makes this exercise more appropriate than ever," Norwegian Lieutenant General Haga Lunde said in a statement.
Relations between Russia and Europe began to deteriorate early last year over the crisis in Ukraine. Eight northern European countries have pledged to step up cooperation to counter Russia's military buildup.
NATO said it intercepted more than 100 Russian aircraft entering its airspace last year, three times more than in 2013. The encounters forced civilian aircraft to change their flight paths, and Britain scrambled Typhoon interceptors and long-range bombers to counter Russia.
In addition to the Arctic, 5,000 Russian soldiers have also begun exercises in the eastern military district, while another 500 soldiers are training in the North Caucasus region of Chechnya.
The exercises are focused on countering insurgents. The insurgency, which aims to establish an Islamic state, has spread across the North Caucasus, where the majority of the population is Muslim and frustrated by local abuses.
According to VNE
