They are setting this up six ways to Sunday..

This post originally appeared on VICE Canada.

At a time when the specter of the Russian military is high on the minds of European countries fearful of the next Ukraine, Canada's Department of National Defense is playing tough with President Vladimir Putin.

Four different military exercises appear to be aimed at the Russian military as Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) members deploy in both the Arctic and Eastern Europe—contentious areas of particular geopolitical importance to Mr. Putin.

In a release from the Department of National Defense (DND), Jason Kenney applauded the latest CAF exercise in Eastern Europe with NATO allies bordering Russia.

"Canada's participation in multinational training opportunities such as Ex Mountain Warrior demonstrates our commitment to collective defense and our condemnation of the Putin regime's aggression and its attempts to undermine the security and sovereignty of Ukraine," said Kenney, pointing out that the joint exercise highlights NATO efforts to project the strength of "Allied solidarity" for nations in East and Central Europe.

Ex Mountain Warrior and another exercise, Summer Shield, sees soldiers from the Royal Canadian Regiment showcasing their live-fire "military muscle" in a NATO training exercise alongside the Latvian, Lithuanian, and Polish militaries.

The Baltic countries, along with Poland, have felt the impingement of Russian influence since the invasion of Ukraine sent chills through former Soviet republics. Estonia—much like Ukraine, a country with a sizable ethnic Russian population—had an intelligence agent allegedly abducted by Russia, raising fears of a potential invasion.

http://www.vice.com/read/the-canadian-military-is-playing-war-games-aimed-at-russia-as-ottawa-increases-rhetoric-781