KYIV, Sept. 12 - Ukraine on Monday launched joint military exercises with the United States and a host of other NATO countries as its bitter rival Russia gears up for its own war games on the EU border, AFP reported.

The annual Rapid Trident military exercises, taking place in the western Ukrainian city of Yavoriv until September 23, involve an "unprecedented" number of 2,500 soldiers from 15 countries, the Ukrainian military said in a statement.