Written by Berber Bijlsma

Recently, NATO has decided to reinforce its eastern flank. In addition to the four battlegroups already stationed in Poland and the Baltic States, four new battlegroups are now being added. The four new NATO battlegroups will be stationed in Romania, Bulgaria, Slovakia and Hungary. With these additional reinforcements, roughly 25,000 NATO soldiers will be present in Eastern Europe. The countries themselves provide about 290,000 soldiers. On land, the reinforcements serve mainly as deterrence for Russia, to show the Russians that invading any of these countries will have massive consequences.

One of the countries providing assistance in Eastern Europe is Belgium, present in Estonia with nearly 300 soldiers. This presence is in the context of the NATO operation Enhanced Forward Presence (eFP). In addition, Belgium provides F-16s to patrol over Estonian airspace and the minehunter Lobelia to the anti-mine group Standing NATO Mine Countermeasures Group 1 (SNMCG1).

Belgian soldiers are also already present in Romania. The 1/3rd Lancers battalion, together with the French 27th Alpine Fighter Battalion, reinforces the NATO forefront. In the base of Constanta, they currently receive reinforcements from the United States, Luxembourg, Italy and Poland. The battlegroup in Bulgaria will consist mainly of US troops, and the NATO presence in Hungary will comprise Hungarian and Croatian soldiers.

Moreover, a NATO ammunition depot was announced in Estonia. The MAWI, Multinational Ammunition Warehousing Initiative, has been endorsed by the Estonian and Belgian Chiefs of Defence, respectively Lieutenant General Martin Herem and Admiral Michel Hofman. The Belgian Chief of Defence was chosen for this task because Belgium is a participating country in Estonia’s eFP. Hence, Belgium is allowed to use the arms depot immediately. The Belgian SPIKE long-range anti-tank missiles will be stored in the depot. Other Allies may also use the storage facility.

The plan is to eventually open several MAWIs, to ensure that NATO troops operating abroad are less dependent on supply trains from their own country. In the long term, NATO aims to change the strategy of member states: it wants stronger and more efficient cooperation, also in the field of ammunition parts. NATO is also planning a MAWI in Belgium, which should become operational in the course of 2022.

Bibliography

Goossens, K. (2022, March 23). België stockeert antitankmunitie in Estland, NAVO kondigt extra gevechtsgroepen en gedeeld wapendepot aan. Business AM. https://businessam.be/belgie-stockeert-antitankmunitie-in-estland-navo-kondigt-extra-gevechtsgroepen-en-gedeeld-wapendepot-aan/