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Joined by members of the Joint Expeditionary Force, Royal Navy ships conducted security operations in the Baltic Sea and delivered critical materiel to a British-led Battlegroup in Estonia.
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Throughout the security task, Royal Navy vessels HMS Northumberland and HMS Richmond performed patrols throughout the Baltic sea, supported by members of the Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF) including Danish frigate HDMS Niels Juel alongside warships from Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Sweden.
The JEF is a multinational force including the UK, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Norway and Sweden, and was designed to complement NATO security provisions in northern Europe.
Maritime vessels from the JEF further supported British and Danish supply ships that delivered essential materiel to the UK-led NATO Battlegroup in Estonia, which has seen the number of troops that it houses double since the invasion of Ukraine.
The security task also saw interoperability exercises between member nations, including exercises between Danish F-16s, Swedish Gripens and British Poseidon P8As.
“Activities such as these in the Baltic Sea are routine business for us and our JEF partners, in one of our principal areas of geographical interest,” Major General Jim Morris, Commander of the UK Standing Join Force HQ, said.
“Given the current level of aggression being displayed by Russia, there has never been a more important time to ensure that freedom of navigation is maintained in the Baltic Sea.”
The announcement comes as Prime Minister Boris Johnson launched the first ever JEF leaders summit in London, where the leaders reaffirmed their support to stability in the region.
“The current situation calls for increased focus on security of the Baltic Sea and stability of our region. The Danish Navy will, with our partners in the JEF alliance, do our utmost to contribute to that,” Rear Admiral Torben Mikkelsen, Chief of the Royal Danish Navy, said.
It is expected that the JEF will have several additional taskings ahead of it over coming months.
[Related: US approves possible sale of ballistic missile radar to UK]
