The official opening ceremony took place at the International Centre for Peacekeeping and Security of the National Ground Troops Academy of Ukraine. U.S. Ground Troops is Europe and the U.S. National Guard took part.
About 1,800 servicemen from 13 countries will be involved in the exercise. Besides Ukraine and the USA, the military from Canada, the UK, Bulgaria, Lithuania, Turkey, Romania, Georgia, Moldova, Poland, Norway and Sweden will participate. The USA and Canada sent the largest contingent, about 400 men in total.
Ukraine is represented by servicemen from an army brigade of the Ground Troops, soldiers from an airborne unit, marines, and cadets of the National Ground Troops Academy of Ukraine. Most of them are battle-hardened troops who took fire in eastern Ukraine.