A series of military exercises with the participation of NATO forces is starting in Finland, part of which will be held near the Russian border. This was reported by “RIA Novosti” agency.
The Finnish ground troops announced earlier that 20,000 soldiers will take part in the exercise.
The upcoming exercises under the name “Arrow 24” will be held from April 26 to May 14 at the Niinisalo training ground in the southwest of the country. About 2,600 servicemen will be deployed in them, including military personnel from Latvia, Estonia and Great Britain.
It will be followed by the “Repo 24” military exercises planned for May 27-31, which will be held directly near the Russian border, in the region of Kimenlaakso. About 2100 people will take part in them.
In parallel, from May 27 to 31, the Scimitar 24 military exercises will be held in the vicinity of Helsinki, in the region of Uusimaa. About 4,800 people will take part in them. Helicopters will also be used during these military exercises.
On May 14-23, in the west of the country, in Lohtaya, military exercises of the air defense forces are planned, which will be joined by servicemen from Germany. Artillery exercises will be held in Rovajärvi (Lapland) in cooperation with the US military from May 13 to 25.
The culminating part of the exercise, Northern Forest, is scheduled for May 26-31 and will be held at the Rovajärvi military training ground in the north of the country. 4,500 Finnish soldiers, 2,000 soldiers from the USA and 400 soldiers from Norway will take part in them.
Maria Zakharova, the official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry, told “RIA Novosti” earlier that the NATO military exercises in the territory of Finland are provocative and increase the risk of possible military incidents.
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