Danish, German troops to arrive in Latvia for military exercise

Danish and German troops will arrive in Latvia this week to take part in the military exercises, including in the Silver Arrow exercise in September, Balltic News Service reported quoting the Latvian Defense Ministry.

The Danish Armed Forces will be represented by more than 160 troops, and more than 60 troops will arrive from Germany.

The Latvian Defense Ministry reminded that on April 14 German Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen during her visit to Latvia discussed the security situation in the region and the necessity to ensure long-term presence of the allies in the Baltic states.

The German minister confirmed that Germany plans to send its troops to different military exercises this year.

In February, during NATO defense ministers meeting, Latvia and Denmark signed the renewed memorandum of understanding and the political vision document, providing for broader cooperation, including closer cooperation in military training.

Silver Arrow 2015 is a joint military exercise of the Latvian National Armed Forces and foreign army units with participation of armed forces from Latvia, Denmark, Canada, Germany, the United States and Britain.

The exercise will be held on Sept. 14-29. The exercise is held to improve cooperation among NATO member states, prepare and improve skills in conventional operations, performing training in attack, defense and other drills. It is planned that more than 1,000 foreign troops will take part in the exercise.

Source: XINHUA