U.S. troops will take part in a military exercise in Ukraine from Sept. 15 to Sept. 26, putting them in the same country as Russian troops aiding separatist forces.
The Rapid Trident exercise is an annual event, and this year’s was scheduled before reports surfaced that Russians were fighting alongside the separatists in southeastern Ukraine, U.S. European Command spokesman Navy Capt. Greg Hicks said Wednesday in a statement.
He said the 1,300 troops expected to take part in the exercise along the Polish border near Lviv in northwestern Ukraine also include representatives from Ukraine, Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Canada, Georgia, Germany, Great Britain, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova, Norway, Poland, Romania and Spain.
