The bi-annual international Juniper Cobra military drill has been affected by COVID-19, as some foreign soldiers are being barred from landing in Israel.

Officials from the IDF and the US Army praised the close relationship they had built, bolstered by the recent Juniper Cobra training operation in Israel.

'The Juniper Cobra 2018 exercise will serve as an opportunity for the IDF to enhance operational capabilities in the face of high-trajectory threats.'

The IDF has begun to prepare for Juniper Cobra 18, a combined US Army and IDF air defense exercise.

Sunday marked the beginning of Juniper Cobra 16, a combined United States European Command (US EUCOM) and Israel Defense Forces (IDF) exercise.

In a display of the close bonds between the two armies, US and Israeli troops will "face" the Iranian ballistic threat in a simulated drill.

Dubbed “Juniper Cobra,” the drill, which occurs every two years, tests the joint Israeli-U.S. military response to rocket attacks.