On February 16 a number of UK military service members arrived in Lithuania to support the Armed Forces with Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance. The British support arrives on a bilateral basis and responds to the requirement in Lithuania.
“The United Kingdom is one of Lithuania’s key allies. The British presence in the Baltic region presents a strong element of deterrence that needs to be built on further,” says Minister of National Defence Arvydas Anušauskas.
The United Kingdom took the decision to deploy servicemembers to Lithuania in response to the ongoing migration crisis by Lithuania’s border with Belarus, as well as the increasingly aggressive Russian military activity by the borders of Ukraine.
The United Kingdom is one of the key strategic partners of Lithuania in security and defence. The countries enjoy a close cooperation both, bilaterally and multilaterally –in NATO, Northern formats. One of such formats is the UK-led Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF) formed by contributions of 10 European countries, including Lithuania.
The Joint Expeditionary Force is a brigade-sized high-readiness combat unit capable of responding to crises on short notice in Europe and beyond: from delivering humanitarian aid and deterrence to combat operations. The primary role of the JEF is rapid response under European Union, NATO or United Nations flag. JEF units could also be activated for NATO Article 5 operations. Lithuania’s contribution to it is a company-sized unit attached to the Danish Army Battle Group.
Related image, MoD archive