Putin watches huge display of firepower during Zapad war games

Vladimir Putin watches huge display of firepower during war games believed to be largest Russian military exercises held in Europe since the Cold War.

MULINO FIRING RANGE, Russia -- Russian President Vladimir Putin watched a huge display of firepower put on by his military Monday when he attended the finale of what is believed to be the largest Russian war games held in Europe since the Cold War. The joint exercises with Belarus -- called Zapad -- take place every four years and their main phase began last week, involving tens of thousands of troops and hundreds of tanks, aircrafts and warships at sites across western Russia and in Belarus. Zapad -- which means "West" in Russian -- is intended to test the country's ability to fight a major war with NATO on its western border. The exercise has its origins in the Cold War, but in recent years as relations have worsened with the West, Putin has increased their scale, using them to illustrate restored Russian power. Russia has claimed this year's exercises involve 200,000 troops, but most military analysts believe that is a significant exaggeration, and the real figure is likely something closer to 50,000 to 100,000.