Troms (Norway) (AFP) – Tanks power across the Arctic landscape of northern Finland and Norway as NATO conducts its biggest drills since the Cold War, with Swedish troops taking part for the first time as members of the alliance. The ‘Nordic Response’ exercises – formerly ‘Cold Response’ – involve more than 20,000 soldiers from 13 allied nations and take place as tensions between US-led NATO and Russia intensify. “Russia has stated high ambitions to reconstitute itself” says Sweden’s Defence Minister, Pal Jonson, while viewing the drills.
