Ukraine staged a major NATO-led anti-terrorism and disaster relief exercise Thursday, a step that this ex-Soviet republic hopes might improve its chances of joining the Western military alliance.
The four-day drill, held near Ukraine's border with NATO-member Poland, finished with a simulated terrorist attack on a chemical facility.
Elite Alfa troops of the Ukrainian State Security agency parachuted from a helicopter, while a separate assault team set off stun grenades to subdue the faux terrorist group that seized the dilapidated Soviet-era building, being used as the chemical facility for the drill.
Multinational emergency crews rushed to the scene to fight a giant fire.
Hosting the Joint Assistance 2005 maneuvers is Ukraine's latest effort in its bid to join NATO. The alliance has said its door remains open to this nation of 47 million people, which shifted to a pro-Western course after last year's Orange Revolution.
"This is an important step toward making our ties with Europe even closer, particularly in combatting such a serious threat as terrorism and the use of chemical weapons," said Maj. Gen. Volodymyr Tymoshenko, the deputy head of Ukraine's Security Service.
The exercises involved 12 countries and 30 observer nations, and included a major deployment of field hospitals, rescue equipment and reconnaissance armored vehicles. Members of the NATO-led Department for Emergency Situations and the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons were among the 1,000 personnel involved, including 250 Ukrainians.
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Ukraine's push West has been talked about quite a bit here. This is just another step in that direction. 1k troops is not a major exercise, but its a good small step forward.
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