Ukraine, NATO military exercise ends in Black Sea

The "Sea Breeze-2014" military exercise concluded in southern Ukraine, the country' s Defense Ministry said Thursday.

The drills, which were held under the NATO' s Partnership for Peace program in northwestern part of the Black Sea, involved around 2,000 troops from Ukraine, the United States, Spain, Canada, Romania and Turkey, the ministry' s press service said in a statement.

Representatives of four other countries, including France, Norway, Georgia and Sweden watched the exercises as observers.

The naval and air maneuvers, which started on Monday, were aimed at "establishing and ensuring the safety of navigation in a crisis area."

During the drills, the troops practiced their skills in overseeing navigation and rescuing a crashed ship.

A total of 12 ships, including seven from the Ukrainian side as well as planes and helicopters of Ukraine' s naval aviation participated in the exercises.

The "Sea Breeze" military exercises have been conducted annually in Ukraine since 1997, except for the years of 2006, 2007 and 2009.