08.02.2016, UK.
Over 1600 British troops will go to Jordan to participate in Shamal Storm military exercises. The goal of the exercises is practice of an offensive operation in Eastern Europe in case of a conflict between Russia and NATO, a British serviceman told The Telegraph correspondent on February 7.
“This isn’t a counter-ISIL exercise. If anything, this is much more about us being prepared to join the US in Ukraine than it is in Syria,” the army source said.
Over 300 units of military hardware is being prepared for shipping to Jordan. This is hardware of medical, recon and sapper groups which are supposed to support the divisions of British troops.
Among things that are to be practiced during the military exercises is redeployment behind enemy lines, organization of a field hospital, and work with chemical and biological weapons.
Such large-scale exercises are conducted by the United Kingdom for the first time in 10 years.
“This is not the sort of kind of force you expect to roll into Aleppo to take on a bunch of jihadists,” The Telegraph army source said.
Shamal Storm exercises will be conducted after the American military commanders have expressed doubt whether Britain actually has a division capable for combat, ready to participate in joint operations with the U.S., like it happened during the war against Iraq in 2003.
