More than 1,500 British troops join Nato's largest annual exercise in Estonia
More than 1,500 British troops are set to train alongside thousands of military personnel from Nato ally countries as part of a major exercise in Estonia.
Exercise Spring Storm involves Nato's largest military drills which includes 14,000 troops from 11 Nato countries.
Ground forces from the UK's Enhanced Forward Presence (eFP) will be tested in battlefield scenarios including trench assaults, reconnaissance missions and light infantry tactics on Exercise Spring Storm.
Defence Secretary, Ben Wallace, said: "Hundreds of UK troops from across our Armed Forces will again train with personnel from 11 Nato nations, demonstrating the strength of our interoperability with partner nations and our combined commitment to the Nato alliance."
The former Army officer went on to say that "while the Russian Army continues their illegal invasion of Ukraine threatening stability in Europe, the UK and our allies will continue to support Ukraine and defend our shared values and freedom."
During the two-week exercise, members of the RAF will carry out reconnaissance and air-land integration drills, while Royal Marines Commandos will also conduct a beach assault exercise to test the UK's maritime strike capability.
The eFP provides a continuous Nato presence along its eastern border, with deployed troops acting as a deterrence against any aggression towards the Alliance's borders.
Recent actions carried out as part of the UK-led eFP include air intercepts of Russian aircraft by RAF fighter jets.
Personnel from the British Army's 7th Light Mechanised Brigade Combat Team (7LMBCT) HQ and Light Dragoons Battlegroup (LD BG) will join the Queen's Royal Hussars (QRH) for the exercise, which will include Challenger 2 tanks, Warrior and CV90 Infantry Fighting Vehicles, Jackal, CAESAR self-propelled howitzers, and other artillery pieces, including British GMLRS and US Himars.
Four Wildcat and five Apache helicopters, as well as three RAF Typhoon fighter jets, will support air-based exercises.
The Queen's Royal Hussars Commanding Officer Lt Col Steve Wilson said: "The eFP is looking forward to the opportunities provided by Exercise Spring Storm.
"The chance to train over the terrain we might need to defend adds to the gravitas of the exercise.
"Our battlegroup is fully integrated with 1st Estonian Brigade and brings highly trained and capable UK and French troops to the field.
"We will be bringing a wide range of hard-hitting capabilities from Main Battle Tanks (MBT), anti-tank, and artillery to snipers, mortars, engineers and tactical air controllers."
He added: "We look forward to demonstrating the capabilities and resolve of the Nato alliance over the coming days."
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