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Readiness of Lithuanian troops for duty in EU Battlegroup will be evaluated

Readiness of Lithuanian troops for duty in EU Battlegroup will be evaluated
From July 13 to 17 around 250 soldiers of King Mindaugas Mechanised Infantry Battalion will participate in a „Calm Response" exercise in Gaižiūnai Military Area (Jonava Distr.). The exercise will be held to evaluate readiness of the Battalion's 1st Motorised Infantry Company for standby period in the EU Battlegroup. In the exercise soldiers will have to fulfil various tactical tasks: march, assembly, assault, defence, and similar.

 

Lithuania's soldiers will serve with the EU Battlegroup in the first half of 2010. Lithuanian Contingent will be made of Motorised Infantry Company and Support Platoon of Mindaugas Battalion, CIMIC Division, Military Police Division, and troops attached to the international staff - around 130 people in total. Representatives of Polish, Latvian, Slovak, and German armed forces will serve together with Lithuanian in the EU Battlegroup.

 

ES Battlegroups are multinational joint quick response forces designed to counter crises. Members of the EU contribute their military and weapons for a half-year standby period in Battlegroups. National elements assigned to the Battlegroups maintain high-readiness while deployed at home and are capable of deploying to operation theatres anywhere beyond the territory of the EU within the radius of 6 thousand kilometres around Brussels within 5-10 days n case the EU military leadership would pass a decision to use the Battlegroup in a region of crisis.

 

The first EU Battlegroup reached its full operational capacity in the beginning of 2005, and starting with 2007 two Battlegroups perform duty on a half-year rotational basis. Each group comprises around 2 thousand soldiers.

Memorandum of Understanding on quinquelateral Polish, Latvian, Lithuanian, Slovakian and German Battlegroup was signed during the EU Defence Ministers' meeting in November 2006 in Brussels.

 

Besides Lithuania's contribution to the EU Battlegroup around 550 members of MIB „Iron Wolf" will perform duty in the first half of 2010 in the NATO Response Force.

 

For media: for more detail contact spokesperson of Mindaugas Battalion WO Darius Dzimidas, phone (8600) 21 931.