OSLO, March 3 (Xinhua) -- Norway will start its annual Joint Viking military exercise next week with British and U.S. forces also participating, the ministry of defence said Friday.
This year's event, which is scheduled to be held on March 6 to 15 in Norway's northern county of Finnmark, will mainly be concentrated along the coast.
Norwegian armed forces have invited British and U.S. forces to participate in the winter exercise in 2017. There will be 8,000 participating soldiers, out of which around 700 come from the U.S. Marine Corps, U.S. Army and the British Royal Marines.
Norwegian Minister of Defence Ine Eriksen Soreide will be in Finmark from March 6 to 8 to observe the military exercise Joint Viking. She will visit a number of field departments, including the Telemark battalion, the artillery battalion and the armoured battalion.
The main goals of the Joint Viking exercise, which is Norway's biggest one in 2017, are to practice crisis management and the defence of the country, the ministry said.
The exercise also aims to increase the Norwegian armed forces' ability to build up forces and manoeuvre across great distances.
In addition, there will also be practice in information flow between the units, levels and the military branches.
