U.S. to conduct exercise with troops from 26 nations starting April 22

U.S. troops will conduct a military exercise with 17,000 soldiers from 26 countries beginning on April 22, the Pentagon said Wednesday.

"This annual, nearly two-month long exercise is focused on the strategic deployment of U.S.-based forces, employment of Army pre-positioned stocks and interoperability with European allies and partners," deputy Pentagon spokeswoman Sabrina Singh said at a briefing.

"Approximately 9,000 U.S. troops and about 17,000 troops from 26 Allied and partner nations will participate. And portions of the exercise will stretch across 10 different European countries," she added.

Singh said equipment to support the exercise began arriving this week in Spain, adding about 7,000 pieces of equipment were shipped to the European theater from the U.S.

The Defender 23 exercise is led by U.S. Army Europe and Africa and has been planned since 2021.