Nato countries begin largest war game in eastern Europe since cold

A large military training exercise involving more than 20 NATO and partner countries began in Poland amid growing efforts to reassure eastern European nations rattled by Russia's actions in nearby Ukraine. For more than 10 days of the month of June, 30,000 troops, backed by large numbers of vehicles, aircraft and ships, will be deployed in one of the biggest exercises on NATO's eastern flank since the end of the Cold War. The move is likely to put further strain on the tense relations between the Kremlin and the West. The Anakonda-16 exercise, which includes manoeuvres such as a night-time helicopter assault and the dropping of US paratroopers to build a temporary bridge over the Vistula river, is being held one month before a NATO summit in Warsaw that will approve that more troops are stationed in eastern Europe.