Russia, Italy, plan military exercises

MOSCOW, Dec. 3 (UPI) -- Russian Defense Ministry spokeswoman Irina Kovalchuk says Russia and Italy will hold joint Navy and Army exercises in 2011.

Kovalchuk said the decision was made during talks with Italy at the Black Sea resort of Sochi, RIA Novosti reported Friday.

Russian Defense Minister Anatoly Serdyukov, and his Italian counterpart Ignazio La Russa, agreed to the military exercises, the report said.

They also discussed other aspects of military cooperation between the two countries, including the drafting on an intergovernmental agreement to prevent incidents at sea.

A timetable for the exercises will be announced later.