Riyadh, 29 Dhu-AlHijjah,1439 AH, 09 September,2018 , SPA -- The Saudi-US joint exercise "Prevention Shield 2" was launched today between the branches of Saudi armed forces and friendly American forces. The Acting Commander of the Central Region, Major General Merie' bin Saad Al-Omari welcomed participants from all sides, praising the participation of friendly American forces in this exercise, thanking the participants for their efforts in planning and preparation stages for the pre-exercise. Major General Al-Omari said that such exercises aim at enhancing joint cooperation, exchanging experiences between Saudi and American forces and raising the level of training of our armed forces. For his part, General Supervisor of the exercise, Air Vice Marshal Khalid bin Abdullah Al-Shiblan, said that the objectives of the exercise are to achieve the highest degree of coordination between the branches of the armed forces, respond immediately and effectively against this type of crisis, achieve cooperation at the national level with other public agencies, optimally use available resources of techniques, unify concepts in the field of defense against weapons of mass destruction, and activate the joint action. -- SPA 15:37 LOCAL TIME 12:37 GMT 0019 www.spa.gov.sa/w746232