Britain to hold 'biggest' naval exercise in years ahead of Olympics

The Royal Navy is to begin a military exercise off the west coast of Scotland next week, to test their response to terrorist incidents such as an attack on this year's Olympic Games in London, media reported Friday. In what the navy is describing as "the biggest military exercise in years," a total of 8,000 personnel and 32 navel vessels are to take part in the two-week long drill, which begins Monday.
The regular training operation, codenamed Exercise Joint Warrior, aims to prepare the fleet to respond to unexpected threats around the globe, the navy wrote in a press release. This year's exercise will have 3,000 more troops than usual and include naval forces from the US, Denmark, Norway, France, Canada, Germany and the Netherlands. The Royal Navy said the training would build on lessons learned from its involvement in the Nato mission to Libya last year. It would test the ability of forces to respond quickly to events, in preparation also for "providing security during the London 2012 Olympics," the navy said. "The opportunity for us to participate in collective training with other Nato and Allied units is the cornerstone in maintaining our high-readiness status," said Captain Alec Burton, commanding officer of the HMS Bulwark.