“Falcon Claws 3”, a joint exercise involving the Royal Saudi Land Forces and their US counterparts, has begun, the Ministry of Defense announced on Thursday.

The exercise is taking place in the northwestern region of the Kingdom, the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported.

“The exercise aims to strengthen the mutual military relations between the two countries and unify military concepts through joint action between the forces of the two sides,” the Ministry said.

It also provides an opportunity to exchange information and military experience, and improve the compatibility of military equipment and procedures, which will raise the level of readiness and the ability of Saudi forces to work with allies and to prepare to face any external threats, the Ministry added.

The latest Saudi-US military collaboration follows the two-week “Falcon Claws 2” exercise, which took place in December last year. It comes at a time of heightened tensions in the region, as Iran-backed militias in Yemen step up their attacks on the Kingdom.

Meanwhile, the Royal Saudi Naval Forces, represented by the Western Fleet and the Sudanese Naval Forces, will conduct the mixed naval exercises “Al-Fulk 4”, at King Faisal Naval Base in Jeddah.

The Sudanese Naval Forces units participating in the exercise arrived at King Faisal Naval Base Thursday, and were received by a number of officers of the Royal Saudi Naval Forces’ Western Fleet.

The exercise will be attended by marines, Special Navy Security Units and an elite group of the navy drill instructors.

The Royal Saudi Naval Forces and its Sudanese counterpart started the first joint exercise “Al-Fulk 1” in 2013 at the port of Port Sudan.