US-led military exercises start in Poland

Poland is among nine countries hosting the Defender Europe 2022 (DE22) and Swift Response 2022 (SR22), large-scale US Army-led, multinational, joint military exercises held from May 1 to May 27, the defence ministry said in a statement on Sunday.

“A total of 18,000 troops from over 20 countries will take part in the drills… including about 7,000 on the territory of Poland,” the statement said.

According to the ministry, Defender Europe 22 is an international, collaborative and cyclical exercise organised by the US Armed Forces to build preparedness and interoperability between US and Nato allies and partners.

DE22 and SR 22 belong to “a series of cyclical defensive training drills, they are not aimed against any country and are not related to the current geopolitical situation in the region,” it added.

Apart from the soldiers of the Polish Army, troops from the US, France, Sweden, Germany, Denmark and Great Britain are taking part in DE 22 exercises at training grounds in Drawsko Pomorskie, Bemowo Piskie and Zagan, situated in the northwestern, northern and western regions of Poland respectively, according to the statement.

The US V Corps is responsible for commanding all forces involved in the DE22 exercise, the ministry said.