ALEXANDROUPOLIS – Under a low November sun, a hillside in rural Greece offered a glimpse of war in the near-future.

Helicopters skimmed tree lines and infantry units scrambled across a firing range through bursts of smoke and thunderous explosions. Above them, a constellation of drones — quadcopters, fixed-wings, loitering munitions and experimental prototypes — helped coordinate the intense mock battle.

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Greece on Friday tested a broad range of domestically developed drones and counter-drone tools inside a full tactical exercise for the first time, part of an urgent NATO-wide push for faster battlefield innovation.

Military officers from the United States, France, Bulgaria, Armenia and Turkey watched from viewing stands as Greece, long reliant on imports, joined t

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