DRAWSKO POMORSKIE, Poland — A major exercise conducted by NATO members and partner nations in Poland successfully demonstrated joint capabilities of defending the region from a rising threat in the east, Poland's defense minister said Thursday.
Antoni Macierewicz and foreign diplomats watched the conclusion of the exercise, dubbed Anakonda-16, the biggest to be held on Polish soil in 27 years of democracy. It was launched June 6, at a time of heightened security concerns in the region, after Russia annexed the Crimea Peninsula from Ukraine in 2014 and began backing pro-Moscow separatists in eastern Ukraine.
"This exercise confirms that we are safe," Macierewicz said after the exercise.
Polish defense Minister Antoni Macierewicz walks in front of U.S. Army soldiers representing units participating in the the Anakonda 16 military exercise, during the opening ceremony on June 6, 2016, in Warsaw, Poland.
Photo Credit: Alik Keplicz/AP
He said Poland is contributing to the greatest military alliance in history that is "countering aggression that rises and threatens the whole world and creates a real structure of threat, coming from the East."
Russia says that any presence of NATO troops close to its borders is a threat to its security and has warned it will take steps in response.
Guns pounded and helicopters hovered overhead in the massive land and air drill Thursday that involved an armored combat group, supported by the artillery and air forces, on the Drawsko Pomorskie test range in northwestern Poland.
Anakonda-16 involved some 31,000 troops from Poland, the U.S. and 17 other NATO member nations and from five partner nations. A closing ceremony will be held on Friday in Warsaw.
