Military exercises involving Kazakh, British, and U.S. troops ended in Almaty Oblast on 24 July, khabar.kz reported the same day. The exercises, known as \"Steppe Eagle 2003,\" began on 17 July. Five hundred Kazakh airborne troops and the Kazakh peacekeeping battalion Kazbat were joined by U.S. Special Forces and Scots Guards to practice repelling an incursion into Kazakh territory by armed groups. Kazakh First Deputy Defense Minister Bulat Darbekov said that such international exercises are standard practice in coalitions. In August, Kazakhstan is scheduled to host large-scale exercises of troops from Shanghai Cooperation Organization member states. Assessing \"Steppe Eagle 2003,\" a British warrant officer noted that Kazakh servicemen will be serving in Iraq along with British forces, so it was very important for the Kazakhs to have a chance to learn how to work with their future partners. (khabar.kz)