Russian Military Personnel Observe Joint Warrior

Russian Military personnel have arrived in Scotland to observe Joint Warrior, one of Europe's largest NATO exercises.

The visit is in line with the Vienna Document which aims to promote trust and transparency among the 57 states signed to it.

Three officers from Russia and one from Belarus arrived in Stirling before heading out on the exercise.

The visit comes as tensions have been high after Moscow was accused by Western countries of poisoning a former British Spy.

Wing Commander Danny Endruweit, Commanding Officer of the UK’s Joint Arms Control Implementation Group, oversaw the inspection:

"This week we welcomed a team from Russia and Belarus to the UK for a Vienna Document mission.  Such missions are commonplace, reciprocal and have been going on for many years.  We last welcomed Russia to the UK in April last year, and we conducted an inspection in Russia in January.

When these missions occur in the UK, my unit acts as the escorts for the inbound delegation.  We ensure that the UK meets its international obligations, smooth the interaction between the visiting team and the UK military, and provide assurances to both sides that everything is being conducted in an accordance with the specifications of the agreement.

"So why do we do it? Even at times of heightened political tension we stick to our values, and honour our agreements.  The UK is a champion of the rules based system upon which all our security depends."

The exercise sees more than 11,600 military personnel from 17 different nations take part.