The units parachuted onto the islands of Hogland and Bolshoi Tyuters, where they went through different reconnaissance exercises, practised gathering surveillance data using unmanned aircraft, and "blocked off objects of importance to the enemy," the ministry said.

Signal troops practised the establishing and operation of radio connections using conventional equipment in a situation where the enemy controls radio transmissions, it added.

After the tasks of the units were finished, they were evacuated to an airfield of the Western Military District. More than 50 military personnel were involved in the exercise.

The Western Military District is one of the Russian Armed Forces' four operational commands. It includes the Baltic Fleet, the 6th and 20th Guard Armies, the 1st Guards Tank Army, airborne units including the 76th Air Assault Division, and the 6th Air and Air Defence Forces Army of the Russian Air Force, among others. According to different estimates, at over 400,000 personnel, the West Military District makes up some 40 percent of Russia's military forces.