MOSCOW (Sputnik) – A division of Russian Airborne Forces has been relocated from Ivanovo to the Arctic amid ongoing snap combat readiness drills in the country, the Defense Ministry said.
Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered to bring the country's Northern Fleet to full alert in a snap combat readiness exercise on March 16. The drills involve 38,000 military personnel, 3,360 pieces of equipment, 41 ships, 15 submarines, and 110 airplanes and helicopters.
"Ilyushin Il-76 [Candid] airlifters delivered the servicemen and military technology to the military airfield in the Arctic, where the military servicemen from the Russian Airborne Forces are to perform various [drill] tasks," the ministry said in a statement.
Russia notified the countries of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) of the snap Northern Fleet exercises that are taking place on March 16-21, Russian Deputy Defense Minister Anatoly Antonov said on Tuesday.
