Drill will intensify mistrust between Russia and NATO

Despite being its largest military exercise since the end of the Cold War, NATO has tried to downplay the war games it is holding just 200 kilometers from Russia's western border.

Trident Juncture, which is scheduled to last until Wednesday, involves some 50,000 military personnel from all 29 NATO members plus partners Finland and Sweden, as well as 65 ships, 250 aircraft and 10,000 vehicles in a scenario in which they are responding to a "fictitious aggressor".

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said the goal is "purely to prevent, not to provoke". Russia, naturally, is less than enamored with NATO's show of force on its doorstep and it has voiced its displeasure, saying the exercises will not go unanswered. It has already announced plans for its own drills that include missile launches in areas overlapping those where the Western alliance forces are training. This has raised fears that an incident may occur, and both sides should exercise caution to avoid anything untoward happening.