STEPHEN FRAZIER, CNN ANCHOR: The former Soviet republic of Georgia, which has been an independent nation for over a decade now, was the scene this week of 300 U.S. Marines turning up to participate in a NATO exercise. CNN's Steve Harrigan was there too. He has this report.</s>STEVE HARRIGAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Three hundred U.S. Marines from North Carolina are marching to a Georgian beat. That's former Soviet republic of Georgia, an independent nation for 10 years, hosting its first international military exercises. A chance to see how NATO operates, up close.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The exercise will just show us what we are, and in what stage is the Georgian military so far.</s>HARRIGAN: Soviet-made armored personnel carriers plowed through the surface of the Black Sea, while from the USS Pansay (ph) a more mobile American revs up. (on camera): These reconnaissance rafts are designed to take control of a hostile beach. They come to about 1,000 meters from shore, then Marines swim in the rest of the way. (voice-over): No outward sign of hostility on the beaches, where communist bureaucrats once frolicked.</s>LT. COL. JOHN LOPEZ, U.S. MARINES: Actually, looking at this, we're comparing it to back home, and this is as good if not better than some places back home.</s>HARRIGAN: War games could sour already strained relations with Russia, which accused Georgia of providing support for Chechen rebels. Any future attempt to join NATO would likely face fierce opposition in the Kremlin, already opposed to such moves by its former Baltic republics, Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia. Steve Harrigan, CNN, Georgia.
NATO Conducts Military Exercises in Former Soviet Republic of Georgia