Major NATO fighter exercises begin

DExtensive exercises involving around 150 fighter jets from Western countries including the United States, United Kingdom, Belgium and France began on Monday in Finland, Sweden and Norway, the military said. In these countries adjacent to Russia, a new member of NATO and leading the “Arctic Challenge” operation, according to Helsinki, the maneuvers will last almost two weeks.

“Exercises have started (…) our first cycle is underway,” Colonel Henrik Elo of the Finnish Air Force told AFP.

The Nordic country ended decades of neutrality and military non-alignment by joining NATO in early April after Moscow invaded Ukraine. Organized every two years by the Nordic countries since 2013, the “Arctic Challenge” brings together 14 countries this year (12 NATO members and Sweden in the process of joining, and Switzerland).

US and several European countries’ F-35s, French Rafales and Mirages, Belgian, Danish and Dutch F-16s, Finnish and Swiss F-18s and Swedish Gripens are participating in the exercise, which ends on June 9. . Colonel Elo said, “This is the largest ever organized.

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