(by Pietro Guastamacchia) (ANSA) - CHANIA, 01 MAG - NATO kicks off Neptune Strike 2024, a naval and amphibious exercise, which involves over 4,600 men, ships and vehicles from over 15 allies. It extends from the eastern Mediterranean to the Baltic coast. Headquartered in the exercise are three European aircraft carriers: the Spanish Juan Carlos I, the Italian Cavour and the French Charles De Gaulle, which handed over their commands to NATO Central Command until 10 May. The participation of the Turkish armed forces with the aircraft carrier Anadolu, of those of Albania, Bulgaria, Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Norway, the Netherlands, Poland, Romania, Spain, Turkey, Sweden, the United Kingdom and the United States, is also substantial. The aim of the operation is to refine the coordination of NATO forces and strengthen the capacity to act as one army. This is first exercise as a member state for Sweden, which participates in the Neptune Strike with helicopters in the Baltic part of the manoeuvres. Among the highlights of the exercise there is also landing simulation on a Cretan beach. It is an opportunity for the allies to put into practice new means and technologies to evaluate their performance on the ground of the Mediterranean coasts. Among the objectives of the NATO exercise is also the response to new challenges, as the chief of staff of the Daedalus battle group, David Duran, explains on board the Juan Carlos I: 'Surveillance of submarine cables and gas pipelines today is an increasingly central element of patrols both in the Baltic and the in Mediterranean'. In the coordination between NATO allies there is also the seed of future European defence. The commander of the Juan Carlos I, Ricardo Gomez, recalls that from the deck of his ship the EU high representative Josip Borrell reaffirmed Brussels' commitment to the creation of European rapid intervention bodies during the Spanish presidency. (ANSA).