Black Sea Rotational Force:US Marines Begin NATO Drills in Romania

NATO Exercise Platinum Eagle began on Monday 18 May,announced Pentagon spokesman Colonel Steve Warren,US Army.The annual,pre-planned drills are being held with the participation of about 150 US Marines and US Navy Sailors of the Black Sea Rotational Force,along with Bulgarian and Romanian troops.The exercise will last through 28 May at the Babadag Training Area in Tulcea County,Romania.The exercise will highlight basic infantry skills,advanced marksmanship,company level command and control,and the use of anti-armour weapons systems,COL Warren said.It is intended to demonstrate the capabilities of NATO allies in Eastern Europe.
Agerpres,the Romanian National News Agency,added that 750 Romainian soldiers of the 1st Mechanized Brigade "Argedava," as well as naval and air support structures,are training with the US Marines and Bulgarian forces. The annual training module of BSRF-15 is to include live fire training,parachute jump exercises,close air support,first aid in conflict areas and subunit command and control procedures.*
The Black Sea Rotational Force is a special purpose Marine Air-Ground Task Force deployed to Black Sea,Balkan and Caucasus regions of Eastern Europe to participate in security cooperation,to strengthen partner military capacity,enhance regional stability,and provide crisis response to nations in the region,BSRF said.US Marine Corps Forces Europe is committed to building partner capacity and interoperability with partner nations through the use of rotational forces and providing the premier crisis response force for US European Command.BSRF utilises the US Permanent Forward Operating Site,PFOS,at Mihail Kolganiceanu Airfield,Romania as a staging base.It executes 85% of MARFOREUR Theater Security Cooperation engagements.US EUCOM tasked MARFOREUR to provide the rotational force beginning in 2010 to maintain strategic access across the Caucasus and Black Sea regions through security cooperation and security force assistance.*
On Tuesday 19 May,NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg met with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in Brussels.It was their first meeting since February.Mr.Stoltenberg said he asked Russia to withdraw their forces and heavy weapons from Ukraine and to stop supporting the rebels in Eastern Ukraine.He also requested that Russia give earlier warning about its future exercises,lest incidents occur that could spiral out of control.
Russia has consistently denied that it has any such forces or weapons in Ukraine.*
Also on Tuesday,US Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs Victoria Nuland stated at a press conference at the US Ambassador's residence in Moscow that the truce agreed to in February by Ukraine and Russian-backed separatists was being violated on a daily basis,and those violations need to stop.The separatists in Eastern Ukraine were responsible for the bulk of the violations,and OSCE monitors should be allowed to monitor the truce from within the conflict zone.*
Ukraine claims it has captured two Russian soldiers accused of killing Ukrainian soldiers.They will be prosecuted for terrorist offences.