OREANDA-NEWS  The Russian military on Wednesday launched the Ocean Shield - 2023 exercise in the Baltic Sea, the Russian Defense Ministry told reporters.

"Since August 2, the naval exercise "Ocean Shield - 2023" has been held in the waters of the Baltic Sea under the leadership of the Commander-in-Chief of the Navy, Admiral Nikolai Evmenov. During the exercise, it is planned to check the readiness of the Navy forces to protect the national interests of the Russian Federation in an operationally important area and the coherence of the work of headquarters at various levels to manage forces (troops),"the department said. In addition, it is planned to work out the protection of maritime communications, the transportation of troops and military cargo and the defense of the sea coast.

"More than 30 warships and boats, 20 support vessels, 30 aircraft of naval aviation and the Aerospace Forces of Russia, about 6 thousand military personnel are involved in the exercise," the Defense Ministry added.