The US has launched on Saturday the largest allied airborne drills in Europe since the end of the Cold War.

The exercises take place simultaneously in Germany, Italy, Bulgaria and Romania, according to a statement of the US army, cited by Telegraph.co.uk. Almost 5,000 soldiers from 11 NATO allies (Bulgaria, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Britain, and the US) are taking part in "simultaneous multinational airborne operations” over a period of four weeks.

The exercise aims to help allied "high-readiness forces" act as one and "demonstrate the alliance's capacity to rapidly deploy and operate in support of maintaining a strong and secure Europe," reads the statement. The exercises will end on September 13.

The highlight of the drills will take place next week, on August 26, when allied warplanes will drop over 1,000 paratroopers and equipment to a training area in Germany. On the same day, a similar drill will take place in Bulgaria.

According to the statement, this is the first time when the US 82nd Airborne Division has operated in Europe since supporting Nato operations in Kosovo in 1999.

Irina Popescu, irina.popescu@romania-insider.com