On March 18-22 soldiers of the NATO enhanced Forward Presence Battalion Battle Group trained live firing at the General Silvestras Žukauskas Training Area. Leopard 2A6 tanks, Marder infantry fighting vehicles, and Fuchs armoured personnel carriers of the German Army were only a part of the equipment the German Contingent in Lithuania used in the training event held to prepare for the exercise the whole NATO enhanced Forward Presence Battle Group will be training in in April.
This is the 5th rotation deployed by the German Army. It is mainly formed by the 104th Panzer Battalion based in Pfreimd, Bavaria. The current rotation brings to the NATO enhanced Forward Presence Battalion Battle Group 11 tanks, engineer capabilities, including a Biber bridgelayer tank and two recovery tanks, and 450 soldiers.
Germany is the lead country of the NATO enhanced Forward Presence Battalion Battle Group deployed in Lithuania since February 2017. Approx. 8 thousand soldiers from 9 NATO members - Germany, Norway, the Netherlands, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Iceland, Luxembourg, Croatia, France - have already rotated to train alongside Lithuanians since then.
Lithuania highly appreciates Germany's and other allies' efforts to strengthen deterrence and collective defence in the Baltic region.
At peacetime the NATO enhanced Forward Presence Battalion Battle Group is training together with Lithuanian soldiers, while in case of a crisis it would defence Lithuania together with national forces and NATO reinforcement.
The NATO enhanced Forward Presence Battalion Battle Group is deployed in Rukla (Jonava region) and integrated into the Mechanised Infantry Brigade Iron Wolf. Allied soldiers and their Lithuanian colleagues are training together according to the combat training programme.
The NATO enhanced Forward Presence Battalion Battle Group in Lithuania includes a headquarters and a headquarters company, supply company, and three-to-four combat companies. Also, different combat support units are assigned. The NATO units may be augmented in case of a necessity, for example, in case of a threat or for an exercise.
Photo credits: Sgt Spc Ieva Budzeikaitė
