NATO to carry out joint military exercises in Spain
PLA Daily 2004-02-23
MADRID, Feb. 21 (Xinhuanet) -- Six thousand troops from 12 members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) will carry out joint exercises from Feb. 23 to March 4 in southern Spain.
The operation "Maritime Commitment 04" will take place in the Cadiz Gulf, western Mediterranean, and in the fields of Sierra delRetin (Cadiz) and Alvarez de Sotomayor (Almeria), the Spanish navy said Saturday.
In a statement issued by the Spanish navy, the Spanish High Availability Maritime Headquarters (SP HRF-MQH) would lead the exercise. The aim is to integrate the different naval groups that constitute the SP HRF-MQH's maritime component and to validate its operational procedures to work in complex circumstances.
This operation will involve 33 vessels, 26 planes and 21 helicopters from Germany, Belgium, Denmark, the United States, France, Greece, the Netherlands, Italy, Norway, Portugal and Britain.
Spain will send 16 ships, among them the aircraft carrier Prince Asturias, four amphibious attack ships, three frigates, one oil loading ship, two submarines and five patrol crafts.
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