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KIEV, Sept. 11 (Xinhua) -- International military exercises code-named Rapid Trident-2017 were officially opened on Monday in Ukraine's western Lviv region, the Ukrainian Defense Ministry said.

The two-week command post and field manoeuvres, which are held at the Yavoriv International Peacekeeping and Security Training Center, involve 2,500 military personnel from Ukraine and 14 foreign countries, said the statement on the ministry's website.

Representatives of the United States, Canada, Bulgaria, Georgia, Estonia, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova, Norway, Poland, Romania, Turkey and Britain participate in the drills.

The Rapid Trident maneuvers have been conducted annually in Ukraine since 2006 under NATO's Partnership for Peace program. They are designed to boost interaction between the participating nations and exchange the professional experience among their troops.

Last month, Ukrainian Defense Minister Stepan Poltorak said that the 2017 exercises will involve the largest number of military personnel in the history of the drills.

In 2016, a total of 1,800 soldiers from Ukraine and 13 foreign countries participated in the exercises.