The Gulf Shield 1 Joint drills, organized by the Ministry of Defense of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, kicked off in the Eastern Region Monday in participation of military forces from 23 brotherly and friendly countries as well as the Saudi forces.

The drill is scheduled to last for one month, Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported.

The drill, which is considered the largest military drill in the region in terms of diversity of expertise and quality of weapons, aims at raising the military readiness of the participating countries, modernizing the joint mechanisms and enhancing coordination and cooperation.

The Gulf Shield 1 drill is a turning point in terms of the techniques used in accordance with the most modern military systems in the world.

Meanwhile, the joint exercises between the Saudi Royal Land Forces and the US Army (Friendship 2018), which began days ago in North Square 2 in the Northern Region, continue with the participation of the Saudi Royal Land Forces in order to raise the level of combat readiness of officers and personnel of the ground forces.

The training program included training in regular and irregular warfare operations as well as the planning processes of joint coordination and training in modern warfare methods. In the coming days, training will be carried out on the implementation of many military tactics, the use of sophisticated warfare methods and increased operational and military coordination.

The “Friendship 2018” event will close on Wednesday morning at the training center in North Square 2 in the northern region with maneuvers in which all the training operations will take place, with the participation of all units from both sides.