Hundreds more Brit troops head to Baltics
Defence boost over tyrant Putin
BRITAIN is sending hundreds more troops to Eastern Europe to bolster defences against Russian aggression.
Soldiers from the Rifles regiment will deploy to Estonia next month to replace the Royal Tank Regiment and the UK will form two HQs in the Baltics.
It comes as Moscow is stepping up devastating artillery strikes across the Donbas region in eastern Ukraine.
More than a dozen residents died there overnight as more wounded were evacuated from Mariupol.
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky said: “The Donbas is completely destroyed. It is hell.”
The 2 Rifles mission marks a change in the UK’s commitment to protecting Baltic state NATO members.
It will increase the numbers of British soldiers in Estonia, many of them training local forces but also acting as a buffer against Russia.
It is feared President Vladimir Putin could move attacks closer to NATO countries following bids to join the alliance by Sweden and Finland.
The MoD said: “As Russia continues to wage an illegal and unprovoked invasion of Ukraine, the Defence Secretary has extended our increased presence in Estonia for a further period of up to six months.”
The UK has also formed the Standing Joint Force Headquarters in eastern Europe.
Usually this is based in Northwood, North West London, but it has new bases in Lithuania and Latvia to swap intelligence and make plans with Denmark, Estonia, Finland and Sweden. A further 180 senior soldiers will be based at the new HQs in Vilnius and Riga. Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said: “This vital deployment demonstrates our defensive partnerships within the 10-nation alliance of the Joint Expeditionary Force.” Commander of the Standing Joint Force Headquarters Major General Jim Morris added: “The security of the Baltic Sea region has never been more important and this deployment demonstrates our collective resolve to maintaining that security.” Yesterday the head of Ukraine’s Azov Regiment confirmed civilians and wounded fighters had been evacuated from the besieged Azovstal steelworks in Mariupol. Denys Prokopenko said: “The heavily wounded were to be later exchanged and delivered to territory controlled by Ukraine.” Ukraine officials revealed so far 232 Ukrainian children have died in the fighting, with 427 wounded. The US has pledged billions more in military aid to Ukraine, plus anti-ship missiles to prevent the Black Sea coastline being sealed off.