Lithuanian Special Force servicemen to continue mission in NATO Response Force
As of middle of January 2006, a Lithuanian Special Force squadron will continue serving within the NATO Response Force (NRF).
The Lithuanian Special Force servicemen have served with NRF in the second half of this year as well.
The Lithuanian Special Force squadron will be assigned to NRF component formed mainly from troops of NATO old member-states. This unit will be ready to execute tasks set for special forces ranging from special reconnaissance to direct actions etc.
In the period from 2003 to 2004, servicemen of the Lithuanian Special Force participated in the US-led international Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan. The coalition leadership commended professional military skills demonstrated by Lithuanian soldiers.
Units of national military forces of NATO member states assigned to NATO Response Force serve on a half-year duty in their respective countries. Upon adoption of a decision to send troops to a crisis region, troops must be capable of reaching their place of destination within a few days. The decision to activate the force shall be made by the North Atlantic Council. Since that moment, troops shall be subordinate to a NATO headquarters commanding the operation.
The NRF is designed to a wide spectrum of actions starting from peacekeeping to high-intensity combat operations. The NRF is of high-readiness force capable of operating individually as well as part of a larger force. The force is a joint force consisting of land, air, maritime and special force components.
Capabilities formed for each rotation are traditionally given its number of designation – since January 2006 a six-month mission will be performed by NRF-6. The decision to establish NRF was made at Prague NATO Summit in November 2002.
The first unit of the Lithuanian Armed Forces to accomplish the NATO NRF was a logistic (water purification) unit. Within the first half of 2005, the unit had been on duty in Lithuania. Currently, the water purification unit has been deployed for the NATO Pakistan earthquake relief mission.
