- Title: WEST GERMANY: NATO FORCES BEGIN MILITARY EXERCISES.
- Date: 7th September 1981
- Summary: FRANKFURT MANNHEIM, WEST GERMANY GV & SV U.S. troops disembarking from aircraft. (2 SHOTS) 0.16 GV USAF entrance gate. 0.21 GV Troops march past. 0.35 GV Military vehicles driving down country roads. (2 SHOTS) 1.00 CU Sign 'Reforger Equipment Asleep'. 1.02 GVs Troops watch as vehicles towed out of storage. (2 SHOTS) 1.14 GVs Crates being unloaded. (2 SHOTS) 1.23 GV Army trucks being towed. 1.30 SV Soldier checking lists. 1.33 SV PULL BACK GV Truck being fuelled from mobile station. 1.36 LV Truck being towed to mobile filling station. 1.42
- Embargoed: 22nd September 1981 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: Germany
- Country: Germany
- Topics: Conflict,General
- Reuters ID: LVA38ZHF9QRWBXGQTQKZ7BL8OQS8
- Story Text: FRANKFURT MANNHEIM, WEST GERMANY
INTRODUCTION: Western nations belonging to the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) have started a series of military exercises in Europe. NATO's land, sea and air manoeuvres began on September 2nd and were expected to last for about two months. They coincided with Soviet sea and land exercises taking place around the Soviet Union's border with Poland.
SYNOPSIS: Eight nations, including the United States, were involved in NATO's manoeuvres. These American troops flew in to the U.S. Air Force base at Frankfurt to take part in a field training exercise called 'Certain Encounter'.
Other American soldiers based at Fort Riley in Kansas were participating in a West German manoeuvre code-named 'Sharp Edge', held south of Stuttgart. At the same time naval and air exercises were starting around the coasts of Norway, Denmark and Britain.
Autumn is a traditional time for both NATO and Soviet manoeuvres. But Western officials said they believed the Soviet exercises were intended as a form of psychological pressure against Poland. They were taking place as the Polish Solidarity movement was holding the first Western-style trade union conference ever staged in an East bloc country.
'Reforger 81' was the overall American code name for the redeployment of their troops from the United States on both military and civilian aircraft. In all, 17,000 American soldiers and about 27,000 tonnes of equipment were being airlifted into West Germany, in what was described as a 'strategic reinforcement' test.
Other NATO manoeuvres were due to take place in Italy, Turkey and Greece. The air and sea 'Magic Sword' exercises involved 60 ships and submarines and almost 200 aircraft from northern Europe to the Atlantic and the Mediterranean.
<strong>Source: REUTERS - GUENTER LAHMAN</strong> - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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