On July 19 LNS Kuršis (M54) mine countermeasures vessel left for Frederikshavn Seaport of Denmark to join the Standing NATO Mine Countermeasures Group 1 (SNMCMG1). LNS Kuršis is on standby since July 2 and now the crew joins the SNMCMG1 to take part in different manoeuvres and operations in the North and the Baltic Seas. The ship will be returning to Lithuania in December.
On 6-17 November 2017 Kuršis mine hunting and sweeping vessel of the Lithuanian Navy underwent the Mine countermeasure vessels Operational Sea Training (MOST) in Belgium where readiness of the ship and the crew to take in NATO operations was assessed. The ship and the crew were officially assessed as com[lying with all requirements and ready to join maritime NATO units, the ship received the "Very satisfactory" assessment which is one of the highest NATO assessments a Lithuanian ship has been given.
During the procedure a commission checked if LNS Kuršis is in compliance with all NATO requirements for a ship and its crew and the ship's readiness to join the SNMCMG1. NATO experts assessed the ship's technical conditions and equipment, the crew's theoretical and practical knowledge of operating the ship, readiness for damage control, communications procedures, abilities to act in coordination with other NATO allies.
The current commander of the SNMCMG1 is Commander Peter Ramboer (Belgium). The Standing NATO Mine Countermeasures Group 1 is a multinational rapid response mine countermeasures unit providing a standing capability to NATO able to act in peacetime or in crisis, or armed conflict. The unit operates in the Northern European waters (most often in the North and the Baltic Sea) where it neutralises mines at sea, trains in other maritime training events of NATO allies and exercises with NATO partners. The SNMCMG1 can also be invoked to respond to crises, to demonstrate NATO presence in the region and solidarity, to conduct port calls to NATO allies and partners. The unit also operates as the main platform for the maritime element of the NATO Response Force. Maritime NATO allies assign mine countermeasures and supply ships, staff, and commander to carry out the SNMCMG1 talks on a 6-12 months rotational basis. In 2014 Lithuania contributed its LNS Jotvingis (N42) headquarters and supply ship to the SNMCMG1 under a Lithuanian officer's, Commander Giedrius Premeneckas's lead at that time.
Photo credit: Lithuanian Navy
