Participating countries include Poland, Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Sweden, Denmark, Italy, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Canada and the United States.
According to a statement from the German navy, approximately 3,200 soldiers representing 14 countries are participating in the Northern Coasts 23 exercise, led by Germany.
The exercise will feature 30 ships, submarines, up to 19 aircraft, and various landing units.
Notably, this marks the first occasion where the German navy has been entrusted with the planning and execution of a maneuver of such scale, Rear Admiral Stephan Haisch, director of the maneuver was quoted as saying by AFP.
The Northern Coasts series was inaugurated by the German navy in 2007 and rotates annually among Germany, Denmark, Sweden, and Finland. This year's exercise will be conducted along the coasts and within the territories of Latvia and Estonia.
The backdrop for this exercise is the growing number of incidents involving Russian and Western aircraft in the Black Sea and Baltic Sea, coinciding with Russia's military actions in Ukraine.
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Source: AFP