Italian troops on Friday took over NATO’s Baltic air policing mission, replacing French and Romanian forces that had been carrying out the task.
The air defence contingent of approximately 200 personnel began its rotation with four Eurofighter Typhoon (EF-2000) fighter jets. This marks Italy's sixth deployment to the Šiauliai airbase in northern Lithuania and its 11th in the Baltic states.
The outgoing French Air Force detachment consisted of about 110 personnel, while the Romanian contingent included around 100 troops, comprising pilots, medical staff, support personnel and communications specialists.
French forces provided protection with four Rafale aircraft, supported by six F-16 Fighting Falcon fighter jets from the Romanian forces.
Both the French and Romanian contingents were involved in downing drones that violated Baltic airspace, with Romania doing so in Estonian territory and France in Latvian territory.
According to Deputy Defence Minister Bronius Bieliauskas, the actions of the previous contingents in neutralising drone threats demonstrated NATO's ability to respond quickly to airspace violations.
Bieliauskas also said the decision made at the NATO summit in Ankara to transition from air policing to air defence would strengthen NATO's integrated air and missile defence, providing greater flexibility and allowing for a more effective response to missiles, drones and other aerial threats.
NATO’s air policing mission in the Baltic states is conducted from bases in Lithuania and Estonia.
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