The Ukrainian military announced on Saturday that it would carry out joint military exercises with NATO troops later this year, amid escalating violence with pro-Russian separatists in the east of the country.
The Armed Forces said in a Facebook statement that the exercises will be carried out with more than 1,000 military personnel from at least five NATO member states in a few months.
“In particular, defensive actions will be taken, followed by an offensive to restore the state’s border and the territorial integrity of a state that has been attacked by one of the hostile neighboring countries,” the statement said, in apparent reference to Russia.
An exact date for the exercises was not provided.
Moscow preemptively rebuked any possible deployment of NATO personnel to Ukraine, warning that this would increase pressure along the border between the two countries.
But pressure has already increased along the border, with Russia increasing its military presence on its side of the barrier. Clashes have also escalated with Moscow-backed separatists in eastern Ukraine, signifying the potential end to a ceasefire in the Donetsk region.
The Ukrainian parliament issued a statement this week declaring an “escalation” ahead, citing a “significant increase in bombings and armed provocations by the armed forces of the Russian Federation”.
Ukraine, which represents NATO’s frontline in Eastern Europe against Russian expansion, has pressured Western governments to “continue and increase international political and economic pressure on Russia”.