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Ukraine, NATO to hold joint military exercise

Xinhua, August 21, 2015

• Ukraine-NATO joint military exercises "Sea Breeze-2015" will kick off on Aug. 31 in southern Ukraine, the country's Defense Ministry said Thursday.

  "The aim of the exercises is to practice a multinational security operation in crisis region," the press service of the ministry said in statement.

  The land, naval and air drills, which will last until Sept. 12, are also designed to improve interoperability between the Ukrainian Naval Forces and the Naval Forces of North Atlantic Treaty Organization member and partner countries, the statement said.

  The exercises, which will be held under the NATO's Partnership for Peace program, will involve around 2,500 military personnel, including about 1,000 troops from Ukraine.

  A total of 14 ships, eight planes and helicopters and about 90 vehicles are expected to participate in the drills.

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

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