Other events in Baltic States

On 3 September, the NATO Force Integration Unit (NFIU) Lithuania will be activated at a ceremony in Vilnius, the Ministry of National Defence of Lithuania reported LETA/ELTA.

This force integration unit, which began functioning in Lithuania in July, is one of the six NFIUS activated by NATO in Lithuania, Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Poland and Romania.

The establishment of these six NFIUs was agreed at the Wales Summit in 2014. The activation of the NFIUs is part of NATO's fundamental adaptation in the face of security challenges from the east and the south. NATO will take further steps at the Warsaw Summit and beyond.

The force integration units' key mission is to facilitate the rapid deployment of the NATO Very High Readiness Joint Task Force (VJTF) and additional rapid response elements into the Baltic region if needed.

The NFIUs will have a key role in planning, exercising, and assisting potential reinforcements, providing a vital link between national forces and multinational NATO forces.

The NFIU in Lithuania will operate as an intermediate unit facilitating interoperability among national and the region-deployed allied forces. It will also contribute to enhance allied training and exercises, and liaison with NATO's operational commands. Staff at the NFIU will cooperate with national forces to identify traffic junctions, key logistical and other necessary infrastructure in the country which will facilitate the quickest possible redeployment of NATO's response forces into the region.

The NFIU in Vilnius will comprise roughly 40 military personnel, half of which will be provided by other allied nations. The international staff will comprise representatives from more than 10 NATO member states.

The NFIU in Lithuania is under command of Colonel (Danish Army) Jakob Larsen. Lieutenant Colonel (Lithuanian Land Force) Mindaugas Petkevicius is acting as second in command since 1 August.