TBILISI, Nov. 10 (Xinhua) -- The NATO-Georgia Exercise 2016 kicked off at the Joint Training and Evaluation Center in Georgia's Krtsanisi near Tbilisi on Thursday.
According to the Georgian Defense Ministry, along with Georgian soldiers, servicemen from 11 NATO member states, namely Turkey, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Romania, Hungary, Bulgaria, Belgium, Slovenia, Britain and the United States and two NATO parter states, Ukraine and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, will participate in the drills.
The exercise aims to enhance the interoperability of Georgia and its NATO partners, as well as command and control capabilities, said the ministry.
"I welcome the start of the joint drills, the second NATO-Georgia exercise, which runs from Nov. 10 to 21, another milestone in the long-standing, deep cooperation between NATO and Georgia and further recognition of Georgia's commitment to strong defense," NATO Secretary General's Special Representative for the Caucasus and Central Asia James Appathurai said on his Facebook page.
It is the second NATO-involved military exercise launched in Georgia this year.
In May, Georgia, together with the United States and Britain, launched a three-week long joint military drill named "Noble Partner 2016" at Vaziani base near Tbilisi.
