FRIDAY FOTO (April 3, 2015)

Send in the Cavalry.

(.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Opal Vaughn

U.S. soldiers in Stryker armored vehicles arrive at Smardan Training Area in Romania last month for a multi-national exercise known as Saber Junction 15. These soldiers are assigned to 2nd Squadron, 2nd Cavalry Regiment.

The first phase of Saber Junction 15, which runs for the entire month of April, will include a deployment readiness exercise and airborne operations into Romania. The exercise will then move to the Army’s Hohenfels Training Area in southeastern Germany.

Saber Junction 15, includes nearly 5,000 troops from 17 nations that are NATO allies and partners: Albania, Armenia, Belgium, Bosnia, Bulgaria, Great Britain, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macedonia, Moldova, Poland, Romania, Turkey, Sweden and, of course, the United States. 

The exercise will test offensive, defensive and stability operations while promoting interoperability among participants. The exercise is part of a wider overseas project, Operation Atlantic Resolve, which seeks reassure NATO allies and partner nations of America’s dedication to peace and stability in the region, while sending a message to Moscow, saying Russia’s aggressive behavior in Eastern Europe will not go unchallenged